


Hidden Infinity

by asroarke



Series: Double Infinity [2]
Category: The 100 (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Angst, F/M, Fake/Pretend Relationship, POV Clarke, Panic Attacks, Smut, Sort Of, alternate version of double infinity, angry!Clarke, inspired by revenge, please don't read this before double infinity pleaseee
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-01-01
Updated: 2018-04-20
Packaged: 2019-02-26 04:52:17
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 14
Words: 77,169
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13228470
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/asroarke/pseuds/asroarke
Summary: "You played me too, Clarke," Bellamy snapped, and she didn't hesitate to slap him across the face. He gripped her wrist tightly, shooting her a warning look... practically daring her to try that again. "You knew what I was doing, and instead of confronting me, you let me think I was succeeding. When I said I loved you, you said it back. When I proposed, you said yes. You had an active part in all of this," he growled as if somehow what Clarke did to him could ever compare to what he did to her."But you played me first," Clarke yelled, pushing him back. Bellamy lied to her first. Bellamy used her first. Clarke didn't start this, but she was determined to finish it.Double Infinity, but from Clarke's POV. A Modern AU inspired by Revenge, where Clarke Griffin swore that she would stay out of the plan to avenge Mt. Weather, but got dragged into it anyway.





	1. Resurrection

**Author's Note:**

> So, for a while now, I've been getting requests to retell Double Infinity from Clarke's POV. I know I've said about a hundred times that I probably wasn't going to, but HERE I AM. Idk, I just miss writing Double Infinity a lot and I had too many Clarke POV ideas while writing it that would have gone to waste if I didn't do this. And I know I said I wouldn't start this until I finish Fatal Innocence, but I'm gonna alternate between updating these two fics until I finally finish Fatal Innocence. 
> 
> If you have not read Double Infinity, I do not recommend reading this fic first. You'll be able to understand what's going on for the most part, but it would be a hundred times more clear if you knew what Bellamy was up to.
> 
> Anyway, I'm really excited about this fic. It's going to have the same general storyline as Double Infinity, but with a lot more plot involving what Clarke has been up to. It's not going to be a basic retelling of Double Infinity. I'm working really hard to make this fic feel like a whole new story, despite you guys knowing what's actually going on. I hope you guys like it!

Clarke took a deep breath, eyeing herself closely in the mirror. She looked fine. There wasn’t a hair out of place, and the dress her mother had laid out for her fit perfectly. Despite how long it had been since she was last in Arkadia, she looked the part.

If only she felt the part…

“Your mom asked me to come here to check on you,” Echo announced as she walked into Clarke’s bedroom, and Clarke immediately clenched her jaw. Then, she felt Echo’s hand on her shoulder.

Clarke spun around quickly, pushing Echo back up against the door with a tight grip on her wrist.

“I take it I should have knocked,” she smirked, and before thinking, Clarke slapped her with her free hand.

“You should have told me what you and Roan were doing with Wells,” Clarke growled, and recognition washed over Echo’s face. Clarke knew that what Echo was trying to do was important, that she should support her in whatever way she could if it meant there was finally justice for Mt. Weather… but they had a _deal_. Wells was off limits.

“I had nothing to do with Wells,” Echo said, and Clarke stepped back, releasing her grip on Echo. Clarke knew that whatever control she had of the situation was false anyway. Echo always had Clarke outmatched.

“You better be telling me the truth or—”

“I am!” Echo snapped, and Clarke narrowed her eyes at her. “Roan was supposed to be getting close to Thelonious. And when he decided to switch tactics, I was a little preoccupied, remember?” Clarke swallowed, nodding along. The last few months had been a bit hectic for Echo.

“Alright, sorry I attacked you,” Clarke mumbled, pacing over toward her bed. She plopped down, before sliding her heels on.

“I’m sorry Wells got hurt. But on the bright side, Roan and I are getting closer. Just yesterday he found out––“

“Stop,” Clarke interrupted as she stood up. Echo’s jaw clicked, before she nodded. Clarke didn’t want to know what she and Roan were doing. She didn’t want any part of this. She just came back for Wells.

Echo and Clarke made their way downstairs in silence. Echo quickly took off, getting back to work, apparently. Clarke surveyed the room, seeing one too many familiar faces at this auction.

She immediately looked for Wells, spotting him off in the corner with a girl Clarke didn’t recognize. As the brunette playfully patted his arm, Clarke realized what was happening. Wells glanced up at Clarke, shooting her a brief, pleading look, before returning his attention to the girl beside him. His reputation as an alleged player was doing him no favors, especially since Clarke knew he wanted nothing to do with anyone after his recent heartbreak.

God, Clarke wanted to punch Roan. Then, she spotted Roan standing in a small huddle with two men Clarke didn’t recognize and Cage Wallace.

“Clarke!” a voice called out, distracting Clarke from her seething anger toward Roan. She glanced over, seeing Dr. Lorelei Tsing marching up to her… and Clarke wanted to throw up. “I was so happy to hear that you’re back in town,” she said with a huge smile plastered on her face.

“Good to see you too, Dr. Tsing,” Clarke replied with the fakest smile she could muster.

“And don’t worry, your mother told me ahead of time so I could set aside some time for you to come see me this week,” she whispered, and Clarke’s stomach dropped.

Clarke could stomach most of the things she would be forced to do in Arkadia. She could put on a fake smile, she could dress the part, she could show up to the parties, and she could pretend to actually like these people. But she couldn’t go back to having sessions with Dr. Tsing. It had taken Clarke this long to just undo the damage Tsing did to her the first time around.

“Excuse me,” Clarke mumbled, before storming across the room to where her mother was talking with Senator Wallace. Her mother’s eyes widened as she saw her approaching, and quickly excused herself from the conversation before Clarke had the opportunity to cause a scene. “I am not meeting with Tsing again,” Clarke whispered, making sure to keep her face as calm as possible.

“I just thought it would be good for you. I know sometimes you get overwhelmed when you come back here,” her mother replied, and Clarke swallowed. _Overwhelmed_ is what she’s calling it now, apparently. A much more convenient explanation than the fact that Clarke now knows that she was right about what happened to her dad. Not to mention that Marcus Kane had shared the list with Clarke all those years ago, making her _painfully_ aware of just how many people in this very room helped her family get away with what happened to Mt. Weather.

“Overwhelmed isn’t a strong enough word,” Clarke replied through gritted teeth, and her mother shot her a warning look. “I’ll find a new therapist,” Clarke added in, hoping to appease her mother just a little bit.

“You seeing Dr. Tsing was not a request, Clarke,” was all her mother said, before walking back over to Senator Wallace with a massive smile on her face. Clarke made her way toward the hallway, trying to get to the bathroom without having to run into anyone she knew. She opened the door to the bathroom without knocking, and accidentally walking in on the same brunette she saw talking to Wells earlier. Luckily, it seemed like she was just checking her makeup in the mirror, which saved them both some embarrassment.

“Oh, I’m sorry. I didn’t know anyone was in here,” Clarke apologized quickly.

“It’s okay. I was about to step out anyway,” she replied with a sweet smile. Clarke was about to step out, but she had a feeling that this poor girl was going to keep trying to flirt with Wells unless someone let her know it wouldn’t work.

“Actually,” Clarke whispered, closing the door behind her, “are you the girl who I saw talking to my step-brother?” And recognition flashed through the girl’s face.

“I just met him today, actually,” she replied.

“Well, I just wanted to warn you about Wells. I hope I’m not reading anything wrong, but if you’re interested in anything other than friendship, you’re wasting your time. He doesn’t date,” Clarke explained as carefully as she could without revealing any specifics. “Love him to death and all. But his whole playboy act is, well, an act.”

The girl’s face fell for a few moments, and Clarke felt guilty. But it was better that she learned this now instead of later. And it would spare Wells the discomfort of having to fend this one off. “Thanks for the heads up,” she recovered, and now she didn’t seem too beat up about it. “I’m Octavia, by the way.”

“I’m Clarke,” she replied, before Octavia walked out of the bathroom. Clarke locked the door behind her, before taking a deep breath. That wasn’t so hard. If Clarke could just spend her time with the few people who had nothing to do with Mt. Weather, she might actually get through this.

Once she was done giving herself a pep talk, Clarke walked back out. The first person she saw was Cage Wallace.

“When is Finn getting here?” Cage asked with that nerve wrecking smile of his.

Clarke furrowed her brows, wondering how she had forgotten about Finn. Then again, this was an “overwhelming” day for Clarke, and it wasn’t like she actually liked Finn in the first place. “Should be here any minute,” Clarke replied through gritted teeth, before seeing her mother beeline for her. She shot Cage an apologetic look, before getting pulled aside. “Am I not smiling enough?” Clarke mocked, but her mother’s forced smile didn’t falter.

“We never discussed our story for why you dropped out of med school and I’m tired of dancing around it,” her mother whispered.

“I’m pursuing my true dream as an artist and you couldn’t be happier,” Clarke replied with an equally fake smile. Then, she saw Octavia approaching them, and Clarke was all too grateful for the interruption. “Oh, mom, this is my new friend, Octavia,” Clarke introduced.

“Lovely to meet you, Mrs. Griffin,” Octavia said earnestly, and Clarke let out a sigh of relief.

“Nice to meet you too. Excuse me,” her mom replied, before crossing over toward where Thelonious was setting up.

“Was I interrupting something?” Octavia asked, and Clarke let a small giggle escape her lips.

“No, not at all,” Clarke lied.

“Hey, thank you for earlier, by the way,” Octavia said, and Clarke nodded along.

“No problem. So, how long have you been in Arkadia?” Clarke asked. Sure, it had been about two years since Clarke spent any real time in Arkadia, but the faces almost never changed. She knew almost every person in this room, and they all knew her. It was kind of nice to see someone new for a change.

“I just moved here, actually. My brother did too. He took a position over at Jascorp,” she explained, and Clarke nodded along. She was vaguely familiar with that company, since it was Arkadia’s newest up and coming tech company.

“Sorry to interrupt,” she heard Roan say, and she turned just in time for Roan to kiss her cheek… as if the two of them were somehow close. “This is my friend I was telling you about,” Roan continued, ignoring the annoyed look on Clarke’s face. Clarke glanced over at his friend, trying to recall when Roan ever mentioned him. Potentially at dinner last night, but it wasn’t like Clarke was in the mood to listen to anything Roan had to say.

“Bellamy Blake,” the man introduced himself, holding out his hand. Clarke took his hand, giving him a once over. He was probably around the same age as Roan. He had dark brown eyes and curly hair… and Clarke had to admit he was an attractive man.

“Clarke Griffin,” she replied, liking the small smirk that flashed on his face.

“I see you’ve already met my sister,” Bellamy said, and Clarke glanced over at Octavia. She could see the resemblance, and it made sense that the two new faces at the party were related.

Then, Clarke heard Thelonious start to speak into the microphone. Roan mumbled an excuse to leave, and Clarke caught onto his jacket sleeve before he got away. She shot him a sweet smile, before leaning in to whisper, “I don’t know if Echo warned you, but if you do anything else to hurt Wells, I will slit your throat.”

 

When she got to her phone, she found a list of excuses from Finn. She downed the rest of her drink, before grabbing another glass. The auction was still going on, not that Clarke particularly cared.

She spotted Bellamy standing up toward the back of the room, watching the auction from a distance.

“You’re not from here, are you?” Clarke teased as she stood next to him.

“What gave it away?” he asked, and she could practically hear the smirk in his voice.

“Don’t worry. You look the part. Just a little anxious, that’s all,” she replied, earning a small chuckle from Bellamy.

“I did just move here,” he pointed out. “Before tonight, I really only knew Jasper and Roan.”

“And how do you know Roan?” Clarke had to ask. She wasn’t exactly the biggest fan of Roan, and should probably be suspicious of anyone in close contact with the man. Then again, Echo might be the only person who knew what he was actually up to.

“Officially, the story is that we were on the Mock Trial team together,” he smirked.

“And unofficially?” Clarke grinned, because she could tell this would be an interesting Roan story.

“Unofficially,” Bellamy started with cutest little smirk, “he and I met as we were both leaving a frat party. It was our freshman year and we were both too drunk to remember how to get back to the dorms. So, we drunkenly wandered the campus together for an hour,” he explained, and Clarke’s hand slapped over her mouth quickly so she didn’t burst out laughing in the middle of this dumb auction.

“That sounds about right,” she finally managed to say, fixing her eyes back on the auction.  

“You two seem to know each other well,” he observed.

“He seems to think so,” Clarke muttered without thinking, and Bellamy raised an eyebrow at her. Right, she was at an event. She couldn’t let her real thoughts just slip out in conversation. “I see him when I come home,” Clarke started to correct. “But I haven’t spent much time in Arkadia since I was a child.” Although, if this guy was new to Arkadia, that would probably require more explanation too.

“So, what brings you back to Arkadia? I heard you’ve been living in Polis for a while now,” he said, and Clarke wonders how he could have heard that much about her in between meeting her half an hour ago and now. Then again, this city loves to gossip.

“You heard correctly,” Clarke said, before seeing Charles Pike stand up to make a bid. God, she didn’t even see _him_ get here. “I just needed a change,” Clarke added in, remembering that she was having a conversation. Then, she saw Diana Sydney make a bid, and Clarke could feel herself grip her glass a little tighter. She just couldn’t understand how these people just lived their lives normally after what they did. Hundreds of people died because of them, and here they were, bidding on art with the excess wealth that horrible day gave them. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Bellamy studying her closely, and she quickly recovered, asking, “So, what else have you heard about me?”

“Hmm, let me think,” he said calmly, and Clarke turned to direct her attention back to him. She wasn’t going to last in Arkadia if she spent every moment of these things getting angry about something she had no control over. She needed to keep herself distracted so she didn’t say or do anything to mess up whatever it was that Echo was planning. “Well, I heard a crazy story about you dating a prince,” he finally said, and Clarke burst out laughing.

“Are you serious?” Clarke asked, although it’s not even the craziest rumor she had heard about herself. “I wish that were true. I guess that’s what I get for staying off the radar…”

“How dare you try to keep your personal life private,” he teased, and Clarke couldn’t stop laughing. Fuck, this guy was funny too.

“Hey, sorry I’m late,” she heard Finn say, and Clarke turned to face… her boyfriend. He slipped his arm around Clarke’s waist quickly, pressing a kiss to her forehead. Then, Finn broke away, shooting a concerned look in Bellamy’s direction.

“Oh, Finn, this is Bellamy Blake. He just moved here,” Clarke said. “And Bellamy, this is my boyfriend, Finn Collins,” she continued, practically choking on the word _boyfriend_.

“So nice to meet you,” Bellamy said with a grin that looked forced.

“Likewise,” Finn snapped, and Clarke whipped her head around to shoot him a look.

“Excuse us,” Clarke said to Bellamy, apologizing as best as she could for whatever mood Finn was in this time. Then, she gestured for Finn to walk with her. “Where the hell have you been?”

“I told you something came up,” Finn muttered. “But it doesn’t seem like you missed me much.”

“What is that supposed to mean?” Clarke asked, stopping in her tracks in the hallway.

“Nothing. Anyway, I’m here now,” Finn huffed, and Clarke’s jaw clenched. God, when her mother and Thelonious strong-armed her into pursuing this relationship, she should have _known_ it wouldn’t be easy… especially since every time he opened his damn mouth she wanted to punch him.

 

“She wasn’t flirting with me, Clarke,” Wells mumbled, keeping his eyes fixed on his laptop… probably doing something for work.

“Trust me, I’ve got an eye for this kind of stuff. Octavia was totally trying to flirt with your oblivious ass,” Clarke explained. “Don’t worry. I discouraged her without telling her why.”

“Thank you,” Wells said, slamming his laptop shut. “It’s just too soon after––“

“I know,” Clarke said as she sat up. “If only you could return the favor by helping me get rid of Finn,” Clarke joked, and Wells snorted accidentally, which made Clarke burst out laughing.

“Like I know they want Collins Industries, but is it really worth it? That guy sucks,” Wells whispered, throwing his head back.

“Spends all night blowing me off, only to show up the second I start having a good time,” Clarke continued, shaking her head.

“And got a little bit jealous because you were having a casual conversation with that Blake guy,” Wells added in, raising an eyebrow. “Which is valid because you are totally planning on having babies with the guy you just met.”

“And so are you since you already admitted that you think he’s cute,” Clarke snorted, and Wells burst out laughing.

“Cool, so I’ll just call Finn up and explain that he has nothing to worry about since the real love story is about me and Bellamy,” Wells teased, and Clarke bit her lip. Okay, she did enjoy talking to Bellamy. It was nice to talk to someone who didn’t already know everything about her first. And he is cute and funny. And maybe for a few minutes Clarke forgot the had a boyfriend. But in Clarke’s defense, her boyfriend sucks.

“Oh, he’ll just go back to accusing me of having something going on with Cage,” Clarke sighed, even though she literally cringes every time Cage gets too close.

“I mean, gross. But also, Finn is picking up on something. Cage acts strangely around you,” Wells warned, and Clarke rolled her eyes. “I’m just saying you need to be careful,” he continued, and Clarke picked up her phone. She wasn’t about to listen to this lecture again. She was more than aware of the way Cage acted around her, but also knew she could take care of herself. “Cage is a vulture. Roan was very concerned about how he was looking at you.” Clarke kept her eyes on the screen, sliding through the photos she had taken tonight. She wasn’t going to engage on the fact that apparently Wells and Roan had a conversation about her and Cage. She wasn’t going to ask how that went. She wasn’t going to draw attention to it if Wells wasn’t.

“I can take care of myself, remember?” Clarke muttered. Then, her phone dinged with a new text message. It was from a number she didn’t recognize, but it was the kind she knew she couldn’t trace… like the kind she used to get from Echo when Clarke was out of the country. Hesitantly, Clarke opened the message.

And there was Finn in a video with a girl who was definitely not Clarke. The girl had dark hair thrown back into a ponytail, with a huge grin on her face just moments before Finn’s lips crashed into hers.

“Clarke, who sent this to you?” Wells asked, but Clarke kept her eyes on the phone.

“Don’t know,” she mumbled. Probably Echo as some kind of way to make up for what happened to Wells. Honestly, she didn’t care who sent it… because Clarke just found her way out.

She started dialing Finn, ignoring the panicked look on Wells’ face. And it went straight to voicemail. “Hello, Finn. I’m sure you’re super busy right now,” she started, turning so she wouldn’t have to see the terrified look on Wells’ face. “I’m just calling to let you know that you have twenty-four hours to get your ass back to Polis. Oh, and tell your other girlfriend I said hello,” she said as calmly as she could before hanging up.

“What the fuck was that, Clarke?” Wells snapped, as Clarke made her way toward the hallway.

 

After her mother was done yelling at her, Clarke made her way to Echo’s apartment. She barged in to see Echo sprawled out on the couch, watching something on her laptop screen closely.

“How did you get the video?” Clarke asked, and Echo glanced up at her with a confused look on her face.

“What video?” she asked, and Clarke rolled her eyes before tossing her phone over to Echo. She started the video Clarke had been sent, but Clarke noticed how her eyes widened when she realized what it was. “I didn’t send you this.”

“Who else would have sent that to me?” Clarke huffed, plopping down in the chair across from Echo.

“Maybe Roan? You know, to make amends?” Echo offered, and Clarke literally scoffed.

“Can you find out who sent it to me?” Clarke asked, and Echo pressed her lips together before shaking her head.

“I’m not a hacker, Clarke. I can’t just trace a text, and certainly not one that comes from a number like this. Someone with some serious talent sent you this,” she explained, before glancing back down at the phone. Then, her eyes narrowed at the video, before her attention moved back to her laptop.

“What are you doing?” Clarke asked as Echo excitedly started typing away.

“I know this girl,” Echo replied, and Clarke’s stomach clenched. “Okay, I don’t know her, but I recognize her.” Then, she spun her laptop around, pulling up a profile of a girl named Raven Reyes…. who was definitely the girl in the video.

“How do you know her?” Clarke asked.

“Do you remember the guy who went down for Mt. Weather?”

“Sinclair,” Clarke whispered, clenching her eyes shut. Clarke didn’t even hear Echo’s explanation, not that she needed to. Of course, Raven would be just another person affected by Mt. Weather… by what Clarke’s family did.

Moments like this, Clarke envied Wells. He had no idea what happened all those years ago. He didn’t accidentally witness a phone call he wasn’t supposed to. He never noticed how his father’s suspicious behaviors seemed to line up with the hell raining down on the rest of Arkadia. Wells got to be blissfully unaware of the fact that the happy life he was given was built on the deaths of 382 innocent people.

If Clarke were like Wells, everything would be easier. She wouldn’t have gone through those years of torture with Tsing. She wouldn’t have been hospitalized. She wouldn’t have been banished to boarding school. She could have spent her life in the only place where she still felt close to her father. Arkadia could still feel like home to her. But instead, she _knew_.

“Clarke, did you hear me?” Echo groaned, and Clarke’s head jerked up. “I asked you what you wanted to do.”

“Can you get me Raven’s info? I want to reach out to her and let her know that her boyfriend is a cheating piece of shit,” Clarke replied. She also just needed to see how Raven was, if she somehow still had a really good life. Clarke hoped she did. Clarke always hoped they did. And maybe if she didn’t, Clarke could help her somehow… maybe.

“I always hope when you barge in here that you’re going to tell me you’re ready to help me out,” Echo grumbled, pulling her laptop back onto her lap. “You’re still holding out hope that Marcus has some genius plan, right?” Echo mocked, and Clarke’s jaw clenched.

“He said he had a plan and I trust him,” Clarke snapped, and Echo narrowed her eyes at her.

“Yet, he’s still in the same place and seems to be making no plans to come back here and finish what he started,” Echo huffed, and Clarke’s stomach dropped. Marcus promised he was coming back, that he would make sure that the victims of Mt. Weather got justice for what happened to them. Clarke had stayed out of his way, just like he asked. “Meanwhile, if you would just commit to helping me, you, me, and Roan could finish this once and for all.”

Clarke swallowed as she made her way back to the door. She wasn’t having this fight with Echo again. Clarke had already done enough for her. Echo had everything she needed, and Clarke let Echo use their “friendship” to get into every social circle she needed to get the job done. As much as Clarke desperately wanted some bigger part in this, she knew she couldn’t. Marcus was right about her. It was better for everyone if Clarke just stayed out of it.


	2. Alliance

Clarke just sat there, tapping her fingers nervously on the table. Raven wasn’t doing much better though, it seemed. _Awkward_ seemed to be an appropriate assessment.

“I broke up with him, by the way,” Raven finally said, and Clarke nodded along.

“Same,” Clarke replied, raising her eyebrows slightly as she took a sip of her coffee. “Anyway, I just wanted to clear the air, so you know that I had no idea he had a girlfriend,” Clarke explained, and Raven leaned back in her chair, eyeing Clarke carefully.

Perhaps this was a bad idea after all. Clarke didn’t know this girl. All she needed to do was tell her about her cheating boyfriend and move on. It wasn’t like this girl actually wanted to have a conversation with the other woman anyway.

“But I’m sorry,” Clarke said nervously. She just wanted Raven to say something, anything really.

“So, what is it like to be a Griffin?” Raven asked, and Clarke realized she probably should have been more specific when she wished for Raven to speak. “I mean, you are _that_ Clarke Griffin, right?”

“Yeah, I guess I am,” Clarke whispered.

“Your family made a killing off The City of Light,” Raven said calmly, and Clarke nearly choked on her coffee. Before coming here, Clarke had known there was a possibility that Raven knew a good deal about what happened with Mt. Weather, especially given her connection to Sinclair. But not many people figured out exactly where The City of Light funds went… “I’m a hacker, Clarke. I do my research,” she explained in a way that made Clarke believe that Raven had uncovered everything she could find on Clarke specifically.

Before Clarke found out about Echo, she had just assumed that Marcus Kane was the only person seeking to right what happened all those years ago. But 382 people died that day, and Sinclair’s entire future was taken from him when he got framed. It was naïve for Clarke to believe that there weren’t more people like Marcus Kane out there. It was a lesson Clarke learned when she got attacked two years ago. It was a lesson she learned when she figured out what Echo was up to. And it was a lesson she was learning again as she looked over at Raven.

No, this girl didn’t come here to talk about their ex. She came here because Clarke was cursed with the last name of Griffin. Raven was like Echo and Marcus.

“Are you working with anyone?” Clarke blurted out, and Raven literally rolled her eyes. “Sorry, it’s just that a friend of mine has been trying to—”

“I don’t need any help,” Raven interrupted, and Clarke cocked her head to the side. “No offense, but I’m not interested in working with you or anyone you know. Nothing personal, but I get the vibe you’re not that different from your parents.” Clarke winced at the word _parents_. Thelonious wasn’t her parent, and her mother picks and chooses when she wants to be her parent based on what is convenient.

“I am nothing like them,” Clarke spat, and Raven smirked as she pushed herself to stand up.

“Says the girl whose newest charity event is for a group even more fake than The City of Light,” Raven said, tugging her jacket back on. Clarke’s eyes widened in confusion. No, that couldn’t be the case.

But _of course_ , it was the case. It was a Griffin Global gala, after all. She should have known better than to trust her mother with this.

“I’ll take care of it,” Clarke said, and Raven burst out laughing.

“Sure, you will,” she mocked.

 

“I wouldn’t even want to work with her anyway,” Echo huffed, but Clarke held up her hand to signal her to shut up. She was trying to weed through the other options for the gala, and Echo was not helping.

“She’s a hacker. You could use a hacker,” Clarke mumbled, flipping to the next one.

“A hacker with an attitude problem,” Echo muttered.

“Because you don’t have an attitude problem at all,” Clarke mumbled, before feeling something smack her forehead. She glanced up to see Echo narrowing her eyes at her, then she looked on the ground to see the pen that Echo just flung at her. “Anyway, Raven doesn’t want anything to do with you either since she doesn’t trust me. And she doesn’t trust me because she thinks I’m just as corrupt as my mother because I unknowingly have been working with a charity that is supposed to help the homeless yet doesn’t actually do that,” Clarke snapped, and Echo raised her eyebrows.

“You seem stressed,” Echo teased.

“I am stressed!” Clarke groaned, throwing her head back. “And you are not helping.”

“I think I could make it up to you,” Echo said with a grin, and Clarke furrowed her brows. Echo walked back to the chair she dropped her purse in, before digging through her bag to fish out a couple pieces of paper. “Had another great session with Lorelei on Friday.”

“What ridiculous story did you tell her this time?” Clarke snorted. As much as it sometimes annoyed her, she had to admit that Echo’s strategy was kind of brilliant. No one would ever suspect her of being up to anything since she just seemed like some narcissistic socialite.

“Made up a pregnancy scare. She’s very concerned about my constant need for attention and how it’s manifesting itself with my numerous sexual partners,” Echo smirked as she walked back over to the desk. “Anyway, I got you a present from her office.” Then, Echo handed the papers over to Clarke… and she knew exactly what they were.

Clarke flipped through the pages, seeing the detailed notes from her sessions with Dr. Tsing over the years.

“Left a few less interesting pages in there so your file wouldn’t be completely empty. But I think I got all the good stuff,” Echo explained, and Clarke nodded along. “Anyway, I need to get going and you need to find a new charity.”

“Hey, thanks for this,” Clarke remembered to say, not even looking up from the papers. She knew she should probably put these away, that bringing these memories back would only upset her… but she couldn’t help but read.

_When I asked Clarke how she liked the man her mother was dating, she dodged the question. She denied it being about her not being ready to let go of her father, of course. Instead, she fixated on seeing the new boyfriend hand an envelope to a police officer. Clarke then explained that this officer was the same one she remembers from the day of her father’s accident. I tried to explain that sometimes our minds play tricks on us when we are grieving, that sometimes it is just hard to accept the past and move on. But Clarke was determined she was right. I fear it may take years to get past her denial._

Clarke clenched her eyes shut. It was the same officer. She knew it, even all these years later.

“Any luck?” she heard Wells ask, and she frantically buried Tsing’s notes under the charity folders on her desk. She glanced up, seeing Wells and Bellamy towards the entrance of the library.

“Not yet, but Echo made some interesting suggestions,” Clarke stuttered out, wondering what the hell Bellamy Blake was doing here… Then, she remembered it was Sunday. He must have gotten roped into Thelonious’ gentleman’s club.

“Oh, Clarke, you remember Bellamy Blake, right?” Wells teased, looking back at Bellamy with raised eyebrows.

“Yes, it’s good to see you again,” Clarke replied, avoiding Wells’ likely obnoxious glare. She should have known Wells would jump at the first opportunity to get her talking to Bellamy again… and she could kill him for letting Bellamy come up here while her hair was thrown up in a messy ponytail and her makeup was all smudged.

“Likewise. Wells was just giving me the grand tour,” Bellamy explained. She had to admit he looked nice… not that he didn’t look nice the last time she saw him. In fact, Clarke was fairly certain Bellamy was one of those people who always looked good with very little effort.

“You avoiding your dad’s friends?” Clarke teased Wells, snatching the drink from his hands. She took a large gulp as payback for not giving her warning about Bellamy being here.

“You should be working,” Wells reminded her, grabbing the drink from her hands.

“I am,” Clarke replied, plopping back down at her desk. “Don’t become friends with this one. He’s a workaholic,” Clarke warned Bellamy, who had a small smile on his lips.

“Wells, he just arrived,” she heard Thelonious say, as she furrowed her brows and glanced behind Bellamy. Then, Thelonious disappeared back into the hallway, and Clarke shot Wells a look.

“I’ve got to go talk to one of our board members. I’ll be right back,” Wells explained, walking toward the door. But right before he walked out, he shot Clarke a wink… and she was going to _kill_ him.

“So,” Clarke stuttered out, suddenly at a loss for what to say to Bellamy. Honestly, she didn’t know much about the guy. “How did Wells drag you to Thelonious’ little gentleman’s club?” Clarke teased, and Bellamy did a slight eye roll.

“Didn’t have any other plans,” he shrugged, plopping down across from Clarke. “What are you working on?” he asked, his eyes focused on her messy desk. Clarke’s eyes dropped to the desk, making sure that none of Tsing’s notes were visible to him. She wouldn’t even begin to know how to explain that one.

“Griffin Global is hosting a gala later this week,” she sighed, remembering the real reason for her exhaustion and stress. “There was a charity that it was supposed to be for, but I had a friend do some digging into it, and found out that it was not exactly helping the people it was supposed to,” she explained.

“That’s horrible.”

“Well, trust me, they’re being taken care of,” Clarke blurted out. Bellamy shot her a confused look, but she wasn’t about to explain how she got an investigation started by making just one phone call. “But now, I’m in a bind because I have to find another charity for this event so we don’t have to cancel,” she followed up, and Bellamy looked deep in thought as he sat back in the chair.

“You know, there’s an organization that Octavia has worked with for years. It’s stationed out of Tondc, but has expanded into Arkadia,” Bellamy offered, and Clarke bit her lip. Having someone who is already involved with the organization would make this whole thing a hell of a lot easier, actually. “It’s pretty small right now,” he explained, as if that were somehow a bad thing. Hell, Clarke would only do work for smaller charities if she could. Smaller charities usually don’t have shady business men profiting off them. “It works to improve the life of foster care kids. It’s a cause that’s pretty close to both me and O’s hearts.”

Clarke didn’t hesitate to write her number down on a piece of paper. This was the kind of cause that would do well with this kind of event, Octavia knows these people… this would work and save Clarke a lot of trouble. “Do you know if your sister is super busy this week?” Clarke asked.

“As far as I know, her schedule is pretty clear. Why?” Bellamy asked.

“Well, I want to ask her to help me,” Clarke said, handing the paper over to Bellamy. “And if she’s worked with this organization before, it would be quite the asset to have her serve on the committee with me.”

“Oh, I’m sure she would be happy to help in any way she could,” Bellamy replied with a smile, and Clarke let out a relieved breath.

“Seriously, you have no idea what a life saver this is,” Clarke sighed. “I definitely owe you one.”

“Well, an invitation to a Griffin gala would be nice,” Bellamy retorted with that cute smirk of his, and Clarke started to feel flustered again. She knew this might be one of the few opportunities she had to talk to him. After all, he seemed like a busy guy, and Clarke didn’t exactly have a lot of free time these days either. But hell, she kind of liked this guy.

“Sadly, we’ve already hit our quota for the number of invitations we can send out,” she lied. “But I do have a plus one,” she smirked, and for a moment, Bellamy looked flustered too. She tried her best to stay composed, but every second she waited for his response made her stomach clench.

“I’ll meet you there,” he replied.

 

Of course, her mother would tack on an extra group of guests just two days before the damn gala. Clarke understood that landing Paragon Unlimited was a big deal for the company and all, but Clarke was fed up with trying to bend over backwards to make the numbers work.

So, she was relieved when Octavia begged her to help find a dress for the gala. It gave Clarke a small break from the nightmare that was event planning.

“I’m not sure I like the green,” Octavia sighed, and Clarke glanced in the mirror. The dress fit Octavia perfectly, but she was kind of right about the color.

“Okay, I saw a purple one that was basically the same exact cut. I think the shape is working for you, just not the color,” Clarke sighed, and Octavia nodded along. Clarke moved back into the showroom to grab the dress she was thinking of. She handed it to Octavia, who immediately moved back to the dressing room.

Then, her phone started ringing.

“What?” Clarke snapped and was immediately met with a huff from Echo.

“Hello to you too, bitch,” Echo teased, and Clarke rolled her eyes. “Anyway, I’ll make this quick since I know you’re off shopping with your new best friend.”

Clarke threw her head back. Echo thought literally everyone had an ulterior motive where Clarke was concerned. And Octavia was not immune to this, apparently. Clarke had figured Echo would have chilled out after working with the girl for a few days on this gala… and Clarke was wrong.

“Spit it out, Echo,” Clarke sighed.

“Okay, what do you know about a company called Frontier Dynamics?” she asked, and Clarke furrowed her brows in confusion.

“Literally never heard of it,” Clarke murmured as Octavia stepped back out of the dressing room.

“So, it isn’t the company that Griffin Global is pursuing?” she confirmed, as Octavia stepped up to the mirror in front of Clarke.

“I love that,” Clarke mouthed to Octavia, ignoring the groan coming from Echo. “And no, it’s not,” Clarke answered.

“Damnit. I thought I was onto something,” she murmured, and Clarke wasn’t even about to ask.

“Bye,” Clarke huffed, hanging up immediately. “Okay, please tell me you’re in love with this dress because it’s perfect,” Clarke said excitedly, as Octavia looked back at the mirror.

“Yeah, I think it’s the one,” Octavia said giddily, and Clarke let out a breath. “So, uh, was that Echo you were talking to?”

“Oh, yeah,” Clarke sighed.

“Okay, did I do something to make her dislike me? Because I feel like she can’t stand me,” Octavia asked, and Clarke had to bite her lip to keep from laughing.

“No, that’s just kind of how she acts around everyone. I’d say she’ll warm up to you, but that would be horribly optimistic,” Clarke joked, and Octavia nodded along. “Hey, don’t take it personally. I’ve known her for years and she’s still kind of a bitch to me,” Clarke added in, and Octavia let out a small chuckle as she made her way back to the dressing room.

“How did you two even meet?” Octavia asked, and Clarke’s mind flashed to that night at the bar when Echo started chatting her up… a little too eager to be Clarke’s friend. She should have known immediately.

“We met at a bar a few weeks before I was supposed to start med school,” Clarke explained, kind of relieved that sentence was technically the truth. 

 

“I have to say, when you Griffins through a gala, you really do go all out,” Bellamy said as he looked around the ballroom. She picked up a glass of champagne, looking around the room. All things considered, this turned out quite well. “I thought you would be off schmoozing by now.”

“I should be,” she groaned, which earned a soft chuckle from Bellamy. She had been a little bit nervous about tonight. It was one thing to enjoy talking to Bellamy in little bursts when she ran into him, but she basically had him for an entire evening now.

“If it isn’t the littlest Griffin,” a man said, and Clarke glanced over her shoulder to see Charles Pike standing beside her. Just when she was starting to enjoy herself…

He pulled her in for a hug, and Clarke accidentally made eye contact with Echo across the room. She furrowed her brows, pulling her phone from her purse and started typing away.

“I’m so glad you could make it,” Clarke lied with the fakest smile she could muster. “Have you met my date, Bellamy Blake?” Clarke asked, and Pike shot a strange look at Bellamy.

“Yes, actually I have. Nice to see you again,” Pike said, and Clarke was thrown by this. Bellamy works for a tech company… why would they have crossed paths? “You know, I was sorry to see that the original charity for this didn’t work out for you,” Pike said, and she jerked her attention back to him.

“Well, there are just some people in this word who are willing to exploit other’s generosity to make a quick buck,” she snapped, and she could see his eyes start to falter for a moment. Of course, there was no way that Pike could know that Clarke is aware of what he contributed to Mt. Weather and The City of Light… but she liked the moment of panic he just had at just the possibility that she knew.

“A friend of mine informed me that the charity is already under investigation. That happened pretty quickly… someone must have pulled some strings to make that happen,” Pike said, almost accusing Clarke.

“That’s the first I’m hearing of it,” she lied, and a smirk formed on Pike’s face.

“Sure. Just reminds me of the kind of stuff your father would pull off,” he said, and Clarke’s lips twitched at how cavalierly he just mentioned her father to her. “I’ll leave you two to enjoy your evening.”

Clarke kept her eyes fixed on him as he walked away, and Clarke took a large gulp of her champagne. She wasn’t about to stay sober if the rest of her evening was going to go like this.

Then, she glanced back at Bellamy who was giving her a curious look. “You look like you have something to say,” Clarke said simply, and Bellamy raised his eyebrows.

“I have a feeling you’re secretly terrifying,” he teased, and Clarke had to bite her lip to keep from laughing.

“Obviously,” Clarke joked, and a small grin crept onto Bellamy’s face.

“Like you probably have someone on speed dial who could make a body disappear,” he teased, and it took all her willpower not to say yes and that her name was Echo…

“Why outsource a job you could easily do yourself?” Clarke replied, and Bellamy choked on his drink.

“How very DIY of you,” he chuckled, and Clarke’s smile grew even more. She really liked his laugh, she realized. There were times that Bellamy seemed a little too composed, a little too deliberate. But his laugh was almost always genuine… and she just really liked the sound of his laugh.

“So, you’ve been my date for almost five minutes and you have yet to ask me for a dance,” Clarke accused, and Bellamy shrugged.

“Maybe I’m shy.”

“You’re definitely not shy,” Clarke smirked.

“Well, maybe I don’t want to step on your feet,” he retorted.

“But if I don’t at least look like I’m busy, I’m eventually going to have to talk to people. And I don’t like people,” she whined, and Bellamy pressed his lips together, holding in another laugh.

“I’m a bad dancer,” he finally confessed, and Clarke took a step toward him.

“I’ll lead,” she retorted, earning another smirk from Bellamy.

 

“Okay, what is the deal with Frontier Dynamics?” Clarke whispered, and Echo just raised her eyebrows in response.

“I feel like I should be asking you that,” Echo retorted, and Clarke rolled her eyes. She knew what Echo was implying and she didn’t appreciate it. Clarke knew for a fact that Griffin Global was not buying Frontier Dynamics. So why the hell does she keep hearing rumors that they were?

“I don’t lie to you, Echo,” Clarke snapped, and Echo’s lips twitched. “You ask me about Frontier Dynamics one day, and next thing I know everyone is talking about it,” she huffed, glancing over her shoulder to make sure none of the staff cleaning up overheard this conversation. “What about it caught your attention?”

“You said you don’t want me to tell you what I’m up to so you can have plausible deniability,” she reminded, and Clarke let out a huff. “Okay, I’m watching Pike and he’s been making some phone calls about the company. And he only does that when he thinks something big is about to happen.”

“Okay well, I don’t know anything,” Clarke reminded, and Echo pressed her lips together, nodding slightly. “You know, if you had a hacker, you could just get into his computer and actually see what he’s up to,” Clarke reminded, and Echo rolled her eyes stubbornly before storming off.

Clarke grabbed one of the remaining bottles of wine from the bar, before making her way to a table in the back. She poured herself a full glass, getting comfortable. She started to go over the cleanup checklist, when Bellamy walked over.

“You didn’t have to stay late for the cleanup, did you?” Bellamy smirked, sitting down next to her.

“Absolutely not. I was lying through my teeth,” she replied, leaning back to grab another glass from the table behind her. She wished she could say she felt bad about lying, but it got her out of spending any more time with Cage than she had to… so it was worth it.

“Why, Miss Griffin, I am appalled,” he teased, and Clarke poured him a glass.

“Wallace is a politician. He’s lied to me far more than I’ve lied to him,” Clarke argued as Bellamy took the glass from her hand.

“Well, now I’m complicit in your treachery,” he teased, and Clarke bit her bottom lip. This was nice, actually. In fact, all her moments with Bellamy were nice, pleasant… easy. And easy wasn’t something that Clarke got a lot of in her life.

“You did not have to actually stay,” Clarke had to point out, propping her feet up in the chair beside her. She felt kind of bad that Bellamy was staying here any longer than he had to. After all, he probably just wanted to come to this thing to make some introductions. It was what most people wanted out of events like these, anyway.

“Maybe I wanted to,” Bellamy responded with a seriousness that she wasn’t anticipating. His eyes weren’t breaking contact with hers… and the message was clear. He was staying to be with _her_.

That realization flustered Clarke, as she glanced down awkwardly at her hands. “Well, thank you,” she stumbled out.

The two of them sat there for a few seconds as they both sipped their wine. “You never told me why you and Octavia were so fond of this charity,” Clarke realized, and a strange look fell on Bellamy’s face as he furrowed his brows.

“We were both in foster care for a long time,” he said, keeping his eyes on the empty glass in front of him, and Clarke instantly regretted prying. She could see a small amount of pain in his eyes, no matter how hard he was trying to cover it up. “Obviously, we had someone who helped us. But there are a lot of kids who get lost in the system.”

“I had no idea,” Clarke replied as soon as Bellamy glanced back at her.

“Yeah, we like to keep that quiet,” he sighed.

“I won’t tell anyone,” Clarke promised, and Bellamy nodded along. Suddenly, Bellamy was starting to make more sense. He didn’t seem like the rest of the people who came to Arkadia because he wasn’t like them. He wasn’t born into a picture-perfect family with more money hidden overseas than most families could ever dream of seeing.

“So, what’s wrong with this Cage guy? He seems to like you a lot,” Bellamy teased, and Clarke immediately groaned.

“He doesn’t like me. He likes my name,” she blurted out, before she remembered that she really wasn’t supposed to admit to things like that. But she also didn’t really care. She had just enough to drink that it was hard to give a single fuck. “Also, he’s a major tool,” she added in, and Bellamy started chuckling.

“Yeah, I got that vibe. He was definitely sizing me up the first time we met.”

“Oh, he was sizing you up tonight, too,” Clarke added in, remembering the annoyed way that Cage glanced at Bellamy when he joined their conversation earlier. “Because of how you helped me out, he’s probably going to hold a grudge against you until the end of time. Sorry.”

“Doesn’t help that I’m so damn charming,” he joked, and Clarke let out an unexpected snort. She could feel the heat rise to her cheeks and Bellamy started roaring with laughter. Clarke smacked his arm, which only seemed to encourage his laughter.  

“And modest, too,” she snapped, and Bellamy made a mock-outraged face.

“Act annoyed with me all you want, I know you secretly have a soft spot for me,” he retorted, and Clarke couldn’t help but smirk. He wasn’t wrong, of course. In fact, everything he said seemed to make her like him more.

“Miss Griffin?” one of the men who worked in the lobby asked, and Clarke let out a sigh. “Mr. Jaha is waiting in the lobby for you.”

She distinctly remembered telling Wells that she would meet him at home… which means something was up.

“Thank you,” Clarke said as she stood up. “Sorry, that’s my ride,” she sighed, as Bellamy stood up too.

“I’ll walk with you,” he offered, and the two of them made their way into the lobby. When she spotted Wells, he was on the phone looking flustered.

She stopped moving, holding onto Bellamy’s arm to keep him from moving any closer to Wells too. She had no idea what this was about, but she really didn’t need Bellamy overhearing any family drama. “Thank you again,” Clarke whispered, glancing up at Bellamy who had a concerned look on his face. She propped herself up onto her toes, before pressing a quick kiss to his cheek.

Then, she made her way over towards Wells who had a wide-eyed expression on his face as he hung up. “You may want to stay with Echo tonight,” Wells whispered, and Clarke furrowed her brows.

“What is going on?” Clarke snapped, and Wells looked down at the ground.

“I heard a rumor earlier tonight that Griffin Global is buying out Frontier Dynamics,” Wells said, and Clarke rolled her eyes. Two days ago, she had never even heard of this fucking company, and now it was all anyone was talking about. “And then as the night went on, the rumor started to change.”

“Change how?” Clarke whispered, linking her arm with Wells’ as they made their way outside.

“Well, most recently, Ontari asked me for my opinion on you meeting with representatives with Frontier Dynamics and asked if Griffin Global was slowly easing you back into the company,” Wells said, and Clarke’s eyes widened.

“I don’t even know what Frontier Dynamics is,” she groaned. And now she knew why Wells was panicked. It meant Clarke was walking into a warzone where their parents were going to accuse Clarke of making some move for the company… or trying to make it look like she was involved with the company even though her mother kept her at arms’ length. “God, why can’t you and I just move to Polis? I hate this city,” she groaned, and Wells started chuckling.

“If we moved to Polis, you’d never get your chance to actually kiss Bellamy on the mouth,” Wells teased, and she hit his arm. “What? If you don’t want me to know that you chickened out of a real kiss, don’t do the weird cheek kiss right in front of me,” he continued, and Clarke rolled her eyes.

She climbed into the passenger side seat, and her phone started ringing. She glanced down at the number, not recognizing it.

“Hello?” Clarke asked.

“How did you pull that off?” Raven asked, and Clarke’s lips quirked into a smile. She should have known that Raven would still be keeping tabs on Clarke, would have been monitoring if Clarke actually did anything about the charity.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Clarke lied.

“No, literally everyone is now under investigation. Shit like that doesn’t just happen, Clarke. How did you do it?” Raven huffed, and Wells shot Clarke a confused look. She waved him off, and he started the car.

“I know some people,” Clarke said vaguely. Raven was silent for a few moments, probably not satisfied with that answer. But it wasn’t like Clarke could go into a lot of detail in front of Wells.

“I want to meet your friend,” Raven finally said, and Clarke let out an easy breath.

“Okay, but fair warning… she’s kind of a bitch,” Clarke smirked.

“Perfect,” Raven replied.

 

Clarke kept her eyes on her sketchpad, trying to distract herself from the fact that Charles Pike was now in their house. The entire family was in a bit of a mood tonight, especially with all the crazy rumors running around in the last twenty-four hours. Thelonious and her mother were worked up that for some reason the public thought Clarke was here for Griffin Global, and Wells was getting frustrated with playing mediator.

“And Tsing told me that you cancelled tomorrow’s session,” her mother huffed, and Clarke bit her lip. “Please tell me you cancelled because of a conflict and not because you’ve chosen today to be difficult.”

“Mhmm,” Clarke mumbled, flipping over to the next page so she could start over.

“Clarke,” she snapped. “Are you even listening to me?”

“Trying not to,” Clarke mumbled. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see her mother throw her hands up in frustration.

“God, why did you even come back here?” she snapped, and Clarke forced herself to look up at her mother. Why did everyone think that Clarke had to have some ulterior motive for coming back? Honestly, she came back for Wells. And it just so happened that the timing of Clarke coming back was helpful for Echo… but it wasn’t like Clarke herself was actually up to anything.

“Because Wells needed someone here that wasn’t you or Thelonious,” Clarke reminded for the thousandth time.

“No, you came back here to cause problems for me. Collins was bad enough for us, Clarke. And you dropped out of med school,” she listed, and Clarke had to bite her tongue to keep from pointing out that she never technically started med school. “Now, people think you’re making a move for Griffin Global.”

“Anyone who knows anything knows I want nothing to do with that,” Clarke muttered, fixing her eyes back on the paper in front of her.

“It’s what it looks like, Clarke. And let me just tell you… the board will never support you over me,” she huffed, standing up. Clarke slammed her sketchbook shut before looking up at her mother.

“I came back for Wells,” she reminded… again. “He’s the only person left that I give a damn about,” she growled, standing up to look her mother right in the eye.

“Wells is just fine.”

“No, he’s not.” And with that, her mother stormed on out. Clarke plopped back down on the couch. She went to grab her sketchbook… but she wasn’t really in the mood for sketching anymore.

Then, her phone started ringing. She sat up, looking around the couch to find where she left it. When she got to it, she saw Bellamy’s name pop up on her caller I.D.

“Hi, Bellamy,” Clarke grinned, leaning back to get comfortable.

“Hey, is this a bad time?”

“No, not at all. What’s up?” she asked.

“The ceiling, probably,” he joked, and Clarke burst out laughing. God, that was such a lame joke… and she loved it. “Sorry, bad joke,” he replied, and Clarke swears she could hear him smiling. “I was actually wondering if you had plans tomorrow.”

Clarke took a deep breath before biting her lip. She was so relieved that she wasn’t reading whatever this was wrong. Honestly, everything else in her life was so messy… but Bellamy made her smile. He was funny and sweet. He was nothing like the other people who had been showing interest in her lately. It wasn’t like he was only after her because of her name.

“No, I don’t. Did you have something in mind?”

“Well, there’s this restaurant in the historic district that I’ve been wanting to check out.”

“The historic district, huh? Are you interested in this restaurant because you’re a big history nerd?” she teased.

“Who told you that?” he huffed, and Clarke burst out laughing.

“Octavia did when we were waiting for a meeting to start. Plus, I kind of already figured that out when I asked her how she got her name and she said you picked it out,” she explained with a big grin on her face.

“Okay, I like history. But I wouldn’t call myself a history nerd,” he replied.

“You wouldn’t?” Clarke asked, raising her eyebrows. “That’s too bad. I like history nerds.”

“Well, uh, okay maybe I am a history nerd,” he stumbled out, and Clarke had to cover her mouth to keep from giggling.

“I feel like you’re only saying that now so I’ll like you,” she teased.

“You already like me, so I don’t have to pretend to be a history nerd,” he retorted.

“I don’t know,” Clarke sighed, and Bellamy started chuckling. “I mean, I thought I liked you. But now that I suspect you of being a fake history nerd, I just don’t know.”

“Clarke Griffin, I’ll have you know that my undergraduate degree is in history with a special focus in ancient civilizations. I am not just any history nerd. I am _the_ history nerd,” he retorted, and Clarke threw her head back into her pillow, giggling to herself.

“Okay, you’ve convinced me,” Clarke conceded, still chuckling as she spoke.

“Good. So, what time am I picking you up?”


	3. Retribution

“I’m just saying you could have asked if I could go,” Echo huffed over the phone, and Clarke could hear Raven groaning in the background.

“Well, you’ve been kind of bitchy to Bellamy,” Clarke retorted as she pulled the keys out of her car. And she really didn’t want to deal with Echo all night at this party.

“That’s my whole thing, Clarke!” Echo snapped, and Clarke sucked in a deep breath. “Look, there is something off about the guy. I’m not wrong about this kind of shit.”

“Put me on speaker so I can tell Raven what you’ve been saying behind her back then,” Clarke teased and was met with silence. “What? I thought you weren’t wrong about this kind of shit?”

“Okay, well maybe you were right about me needing a hacker,” Echo conceded, and a huge grin formed on Clarke’s lips.

“I’m sorry, what was that?”

“Thank you,” she groaned, and Clarke could barely make out Raven’s laughter in the background.

“Good, now lay off Bellamy. I like him,” Clarke replied before hanging up.

She made her way up to the house and the party was already in full swing. Octavia was sneaking out the front door with some guy Clarke had never seen before, and Clarke didn’t bother to stop them since Octavia seemed to be in a hurry. Jasper wasn’t lying about his party throwing skills… not even a little bit. For the most part, Clarke knew a lot of the people here already. But there were a few faces she didn’t recognize, which was to be expected since she didn’t know a lot of Bellamy’s friends.

Then, she located Bellamy storming down the hallway looking like he was looking for something.

“Someone isn’t in the party mood,” she teased, and Bellamy almost jumped, clearly not noticing her sneak up on him. She pulled him in for a hug as she chuckled at how flustered he was

“No, I was just looking for my sister,” he explained as he broke away from the hug. Clarke cocked her head to the side, remembering that she had just seen Octavia minutes ago.

“She just walked out the door a few minutes ago.”

“I’m assuming she was with a really tall guy with tattoos?” he asked with a slight clench in his jaw. Ah, that was why he was so flustered.

“Yep. Didn’t peg you for the overprotective brother type,” she teased.

“I’m not,” he said, and Clarke glanced down at his clenched fists.

“Clearly. Your new house is great, by the way,” she replied.

“Thank you. I’m excited about it,” Bellamy explained as he surveyed the room. Clarke glanced around too, only to discover that Roan was here. “Something wrong?” Bellamy asked, and Clarke snapped out of her haze for a moment.

“No, just forgot you and Roan know each other,” Clarke murmured. She really didn’t like that those two knew each other. She couldn’t trust Roan. For all she knew, he was using Bellamy the same way he was using Wells. “Excuse me, I need to talk to him about something,” Clarke decided as she made her way around Bellamy. Roan spotted her before she even got to him, his smile fading as Clarke grew closer. He dismissed the people he was talking to, clearly anticipating that Clarke had a lot on her mind. Then, she gestured toward the front door, hearing Roan follow after her.

“Got something to say, Griffin?” he huffed as soon as the door was shut.

“What are you doing here?” Clarke growled, crossing her arms.

“Bellamy is an old friend of mine from college and he invited me. Got a problem with that?” he retorted.

“Okay, let me be very clear about something. Bellamy is off limits too. If you’re using him for something, stop,” she snapped, and Roan started fucking smirking at her… and her hands clenched into fists.

“And what could I possibly be using him for? If anything, he used me,” Roan teased, and Clarke narrowed her eyes at him. “What? He used my connection to your family to get invited to that auction. Now all the sudden he’s quite a prominent figure in the Arkadian social scene and got Arkadia’s little princess wrapped around his finger,” he huffed, and Clarke threw her head back in frustration.

“Okay, that’s not what’s happening here,” Clarke snapped. “He’s new in town and you were the only person he knew.”

“I _know_ Bellamy. He never gave a shit about the little charity functions or sucking up to society members before. He’s up to something,” Roan explained, and Clarke rolled her eyes.

“That’s a lot of bull coming from you,” she replied, raising an eyebrow at him. Then, she moved toward the front door. “And I’m serious. He’s off limits for whatever you’re doing.”

“Cute little threat,” he teased, and she whipped her head around to glare at him. “What could you even do to me?”

“I wouldn’t have to do anything to you,” Clarke smirked. “I know just what kind of thing to say to Thelonious to get him to do it for me.” Then, his face went pale, and Clarke went back inside.

 

“Clarke, you are just so pretty. Like a princess,” Jasper slurred with a huge grin on his face, as she and Bellamy helped get him into Bellamy’s bedroom. “Bellamy, back me up.” He flopped his head to the other side to look at Bellamy, who was struggling to keep his face composed. Then, Bellamy’s eyes met Clarke’s with a slight teasing glint in them.

“Clarke, you’re pretty like a princess,” he teased, and Clarke burst out laughing.

“I think he likes you,” Jasper whispered, and Clarke could feel her cheeks flush.

“Jasper, I can hear you,” Bellamy groaned as they pushed Jasper onto the bed.

“No, you can’t. I’m whispering,” Jasper murmured, closing his eyes. Bellamy gestured with his head for Clarke to follow after him as they left his room.

“Sorry about him,” Bellamy whispered as soon as the bedroom door was shut.

“Don’t be. I like Jasper. Drunk him is adorable,” Clarke grinned.

“He’s less adorable in the morning,” Bellamy smirked, and Clarke glanced down at the ground as she chuckled. “Hey, can I ask you something kind of personal?” he asked, and Clarke nodded. “What’s going on with Roan?” he asked as he sat down on the couch.

Clarke let out a sigh, following after him. She should have expected that he’d ask her about that, especially since Clarke didn’t even try to be subtle about how much she didn’t want Roan anywhere near Bellamy. He probably saw her shoot Roan a glare or drag him out to his front porch to bitch him out. “It’s a long story.”

“I’ve got time,” Bellamy replied, and Clarke swallowed. It wasn’t like she could tell him about what Roan was really doing in Arkadia. She couldn’t tell anyone.

“It’s about Wells,” Clarke whispered, noticing how intensely Bellamy was studying her.

“What you tell me stays between us,” Bellamy reassured, likely sensing that Clarke felt uneasy about opening up to him. Honestly, there were very few people that Clarke actually opened up to. It wasn’t easy after Lexa betrayed her to trust anyone else. She couldn’t really tell Wells much these days, especially since he had no idea about what really happened at Mt. Weather. By default, Echo was the only person Clarke _could_ talk to, and Clarke was hesitant to even call her a friend. Echo had done a lot for Clarke, but it wasn’t out of the goodness in her heart. Clarke helped Echo and Echo helped Clarke. At best, they had an alliance.

But Bellamy was different. She could feel it. And one day… she was going to have to learn to trust someone for real. Might as well be today.

“Has Roan told you anything about how he got his job with my family?” she asked, and Bellamy shook his head as he slid closer to her on the couch. “Thelonious offered it to him along with an obscene paycheck in exchange for… his discretion,” Clarke admitted, waiting for Bellamy’s freaked out reaction. Sure, he looked surprised… but in the “what the hell?” kind of way, not in the about to run out the door kind of way. So, Clarke kept going. “You see, Wells is going to take over The Ark one day… which means he needs to sustain a certain kind of image.”

“So, Roan found something out about Wells and now Thelonious is paying him to keep his mouth shut?” Bellamy asked.

“Not exactly. You see, before Roan worked for us, he was kind of Wells’ boyfriend,” Clarke explained, ignoring her internal panic. She was being stupid. It wasn’t like Bellamy was the kind of person to sell this information for a payday or one of the Arkadian gossipers that always caused Clarke’s family pain. He cared about Clarke, at least a little. She could trust him with this. “When Thelonious found out, he offered Roan a check and a job to call things off… and Roan took it.”

Bellamy reached forward to grab Clarke’s hand, a reassuring gesture she took as a good sign. She was right to trust him, she reminded herself. “That’s horrible,” he whispered.

“Just another day in the Griffin-Jaha household,” she grumbled, thinking back to when her mother did the exact same thing with Lexa, and later, Niylah. At least they couldn’t buy Bellamy off, nor would they really want to.

“Poor Wells.”

“Bad enough that he got his heart broken, but he also has to see the person who did it every single day,” she huffed, gripping onto Bellamy’s hand just a bit tighter. At least Clarke didn’t have to see Lexa after it happened. Or Niylah. In fact, she hadn’t seen either of them since it happened. Wells didn’t get that luxury, apparently.

“At least he has you,” Bellamy whispered softly, and Clarke ducked her head to hide the small blush creeping onto her cheeks. She spotted her hand in his, loving the tender way he was rubbing his thumb up and down the back of her hand.

“Thanks,” she managed to say before she looked up at him. He was practically beaming at her, and Clarke was suddenly at a loss for what to do or say. No one ever looked at her like this, at least not in a long time, anyway. “Sorry I just dumped all that onto you,” she stuttered out, and then his hand found its way to her shoulder.

“Hey, it’s okay,” he replied, and Clarke nodded along. Really, it felt amazing to get all that out. She couldn’t talk to anyone else about it, not even Echo… who would immediately go on the defensive for Roan. She rested her head on Bellamy’s shoulder, and Bellamy snaked an arm around her waist. “If that had happened to Octavia, I doubt I’d handle it as well as you are,” he whispered, and Clarke let out a breath.

“So, you are the overprotective brother type,” she teased as she glanced up at him, and he immediately threw his head back with a small smirk on his lips.

“Okay, maybe a little bit,” he replied, and Clarke started giggling. He glanced back at Clarke with a soft smile, and she felt like she could melt under the intensity of his gaze. Then, his lips were on hers, and Clarke’s mind went blank.

After a few moments, Bellamy started to pull away, and Clarke cupped his face between her hands to pull him back to her. Her lips crashed back into his, tasting just a hint of whiskey on his tongue.

When he pulled away again, he rested his forehead against Clarke’s… both of them catching their breath. There was a small smile on his lips, one that probably mirrored her own. That felt… _right_. And nothing had felt right in so long for Clarke.

Then, Clarke felt something she hadn’t felt in a long time. She felt _happy_.

 

“We haven’t talked a lot about your transition back to Arkadia,” Tsing said, glancing up from her notepad.

“I haven’t been back very long,” Clarke huffed, crossing her arms. It was her second session this week, per her mother’s demands. She could tell Tsing was getting frustrated that Clarke wasn’t letting anything personal slip, but Clarke also didn’t trust this woman. It wasn’t like Clarke could talk about Mt. Weather to her without risking getting brainwashed again.

“Well, we’ve touched a lot on your family relationships, how are your other relationships looking?”

“I have my best friend Echo,” Clarke smirked, loving the way Tsing’s lips twitched at the mention of Echo’s name. Clarke could only imagine what kind of crazy sessions the two of them had.

“Uh, earlier this week you mentioned going to a friend’s party. How was that?” Tsing changed the subject, and Clarke took a deep breath.

“It was fine,” Clarke replied.

“Clarke, you need to give me something to work with here.”

Clarke let out a groan, but knew this wasn’t going to stop until she gave in and gave her something. “Okay, it was my new friend Bellamy’s party. He’s new to Arkadia and he had just bought a house. I had a lovely time, met lots of fun people, happy?” Clarke snapped, and Tsing narrowed her eyes at her.

“Who is Bellamy to you?” she asked, and Clarke bit her lip… before realizing that nervous tick just gave herself away. Tsing knew all of Clarke’s little micro expressions, knew what they meant… which means she just figured out that Bellamy was more than just a friend.

“We have gone out a few times,” Clarke conceded, and Tsing took off her glasses to lean forward.

“That’s great, Clarke,” she said, and that was not the reaction she had anticipated. “No, I mean you’ve always had some trust issues, which are very valid. Especially with what happened in your past relationships. This shows that you’re moving on.”

Clarke blinked a few times, reflecting on that sentence. It wasn’t that she hadn’t moved on from Lexa and Niylah. She had, a long time ago… but she could see why it didn’t look like it.

“Well, it was about time,” Clarke said, hoping to appease Tsing’s questioning.

“Look, I know you are skeptical about talk therapy,” Tsing started, and Clarke had to bite her tongue to not correct her. Clarke respected talk therapy and it had done wonders for her in the past few years. It was Tsing she didn’t trust. “But you are making a lot of progress. This shows you’re willing to let someone in, and you should be really proud of yourself.”

“Thanks,” Clarke muttered, looking down at her watch to check the time.

“Do you see a future with this Bellamy guy?” she asked, and Clarke’s head jerked up. She furrowed her brows, realizing she didn’t know the answer to that question.

Clarke never saw a future with anyone. Not with Lexa, Niylah, or Finn. Clarke just couldn’t picture her own future. Or she tried not to. She didn’t know what was going to happen. She didn’t know if Marcus was going to succeed with his plan. She didn’t know if she was looking at an entire lifetime of being her family’s PR prop. She didn’t know if she was going to be stuck at Griffin Global living with the guilt of what happened with Mt. Weather for her entire life. She didn’t know if her entire life would change when or if Marcus came after her family.

So, she couldn’t think about a future with Bellamy. Not when she had no idea what hers alone looked like. She couldn’t drag another person into this chaos. She just couldn’t. They were having fun. That’s all it had to be.

 

Clarke was searching for where she left her mother’s statements when she heard, “Hey, Clarke,” from Bellamy Blake himself. She glanced up at him, grinning immediately.

“I didn’t know you were coming to this,” Clarke said as she moved toward him.

“Oh, I wouldn’t miss an event like this,” he smirked.

“And here I thought you just wanted to see me,” she teased, her mind flashing back to that kiss after his party.

“You’re okay,” he shrugged, and Clarke’s eyes momentarily dropped down to his lips. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to distract you from whatever it is you were doing,” he said, and Clarke snapped back into focus. Right, she had work she needed to be doing. She could talk to Bellamy after.

“Yeah, I’ve got to get back to work. But I’ll see you after?” she asked, walking backward toward the tent, and he nodded.

She turned around and got back to getting her mother’s statements in order. Then, her phone started ringing.

“Why is Charles Pike here?” Echo whispered, and Clarke popped her head out of the tent to survey the crowd. And there he was, seating at the table right behind Bellamy and Octavia.

“I mean, he is always on the guest lists for these things,” Clarke whispered, now looking for Echo… vaguely recalling that she put Echo in the far back because she might have been mad at her when doing the seating arrangements.

“But he’s basically the laughing stock of this entire town. And it’s not like he can afford to be charitable anyway,” Echo muttered, and Clarke pressed her lips together. Echo had a point. After whatever the hell happened with that Frontier Dynamics debacle, Pike had fallen out of the more elite Arkadian social circles. His business went under. No one bailed him out. Not that Clarke felt bad for him for even a moment. Karma bit him in the ass, hard.

“Maybe he’s just keeping up appearances,” Clarke huffed as her mother made her way over to the tent. “I’ll talk to you after. Stay out of trouble,” Clarke whispered before hanging up.

“You got my speech?” Abby asked, and Clarke stepped back into the tent to grab the papers for her.

“All edited and perfect,” Clarke replied, handing it over. Then, her mother took off toward the stage. Clarke grabbed the remote before heading out herself. Unfortunately, Cage Wallace had been helping out with this particular charity, meaning he took a spot beside her off to the side of the stage.

“You look nice today,” he whispered, and Clarke pressed her lips together.

“Thanks,” she muttered.

“As many of you know, our family is dedicated to helping those in need,” her mother started to say into the mic, and Clarke forced herself to take a deep breath. “One of our closest friends, Dr. Lorelei Tsing, has started an organization that focuses on mental health in lower income school systems. She has a little presentation for us.”

Clarke made her way to her seat, gritting her teeth as Dr. Tsing got up to speak. “You okay?” Cage asked, and Clarke waved him off.

“In my most recent book, I break down how mental health problems tend to slip through the cracks at an early age. With the help of Diana Sydney, we traveled the country, collecting interviews and stats from dozens of schools. Today, I would like to show you what we found,” Tsing explained, and Clarke used the remote to start the video.

“I see they saved the most important job for you,” Cage teased, and Clarke shot him a glare.

“You do know that I did all the actual work for this, right? That I’m not just the blonde in charge of pressing a button on cue?” she huffed, and Cage’s head snapped around to focus on the video.

Clarke glanced around at everyone, finally spotting Echo in the back chugging a mimosa like her life depended on it. Well, at least she was staying in character.

Then, she heard something strange in the video. She whipped her head back around to see the words “Arkadia Exposed” flashed across the screen. No, this wasn’t the presentation.

“Honestly, I really do love him. But when I’m with him, I can’t help but think about someone else,” Pike’s wife said… in what looked like Tsing’s office. No, that _was_ Tsing’s office. These were Tsing’s recordings. “The worst is when I’m thinking about his brother,” she confessed, and gasps were heard around the room.

“I’m grateful it was just a scare,” Clarke heard Echo’s voice say, and her stomach dropped. _Her_ session was getting leaked too. Clarke turned to look at Echo who had an amused look on her face. “I can’t even begin to guess who the father would be,” she heard Echo on the video say, and Echo nearly spit out her drink.

“What the hell is this?” her mother shouted, and Clarke remembered that she had the remote. She could turn this off.

“Oh my God, these are all online,” someone else shouted, and Clarke’s stomach dropped. _All_ Tsing’s recordings could be online… including Clarke’s… and Clarke had no idea of knowing how far back they went.

“I wouldn’t say he’s controlling. But he does have a tendency to try and tell me what to do,” Octavia said to Tsing.

“Clarke, turn this off!” her mother yelled, and Clarke jumped up. Right. She needed to turn this damn thing off before anyone else’s privacy was violated. She started rushing over to the DVD player since it wasn’t stopping when she hit the button.

“Things were better when she was still in Polis,” a familiar voice said, and Clarke stopped dead in her tracks to look up at the screen. There was her mother sitting comfortably on that couch, and Clarke _knew_ she was talking about Clarke. “I hardly ever had to speak to her,” she explained, and Clarke’s stomach dropped. “But now, it’s a constant battle to have a civil conversation with her. It disgusts me how ungrateful she is for everything I’ve done for her.”

_Everything she had done for her_. As if everything her mother had done was for her… in a way, it was. Clarke benefited just as much as everyone else did for the unspeakable things her mother did to Mt. Weather. Clarke benefited, making her just as involved in this nightmare as everyone else.

“Clarke,” her mother said frantically as she ran up to her, but Clarke held the remote far away from her mother’s grasp. Clarke needed to hear what else her mother had to say.

“Some days, I wonder why Jake and I tried so hard to have Clarke,” she said on the video before it all went blank. Clarke locked eyes with her mother. _That_ was something that could never be taken back.

“That was taken out of context,” her mother explained, and Clarke’s jaw clenched. She could feel her entire body start to shake and she was fighting everything in her to not start screaming at her mother.

She turned around quickly, trying to get out of there as quickly as possible. Clarke couldn’t stay composed. Not now. Not after that.

“Clarke!” her mother shouted, chasing after her.

“Let me go,” Clarke growled as soon as her mother grabbed onto her wrist.

“Let me explain,” she snapped, and Clarke narrowed her eyes at her.

“You don’t want me as your daughter. That’s not news to me,” Clarke spat. “I never wanted to be _your_ daughter.”

With that, she broke free of her mother’s clasp before sprinting out of there.

 

There were _seven_ videos of Clarke’s sessions… all covering her mother, her fallout with Lexa, and an entire session where Clarke broke down sobbing because she felt so alone.

“Okay, I got back here as soon as I could, but the news crews made it hard for me to get out of there,” Echo huffed as she slammed the door shut behind her. Clarke glanced over at Raven who was busy trying to find where these videos were coming from and if she could take them down.

“Look me in the eye and tell me that you and Roan had nothing to do with this,” Clarke snapped, and Echo cocked her head to the side.

“Why the fuck would I put myself on that video?” she spat.

“To make yourself look less guilty,” Clarke accused, and Echo let out a groan.

“Echo doesn’t have the skillset to do this on her own, and I wouldn’t have helped her,” Raven said, and Clarke turned to look at her. Well, at least they were getting along now.

“I’m sorry,” Clarke muttered, and Echo raised her eyebrows. “But there is no way this is a coincidence. First Pike, now Tsing? And a lot of the videos online are Mt. Weather conspirators or members of their families.”

“I had the same thought,” Echo huffed, and Clarke’s stomach dropped. This _wasn’t_ a coincidence. This was Marcus Kane.

“Are you still tracking Marcus?” Clarke asked, and Echo rolled her eyes.

“He hasn’t left Tondc,” she replied, and Clarke bit her lip. She went to grab her bag, but Echo stopped her. “Hey, I took a video of your mother threatening Tsing after you left,” she explained, and Clarke took a deep breath.

“Leak it,” Clarke decided, and Echo’s eyes widened. “I don’t care about the bad press. Leak it. I want to make her life hell,” Clarke snapped, before storming out of her apartment.

Once she got into her car, she leaned over to open the glove compartment, feeling around in the dark until she found her burner phone.

She sat there for a moment in silence, before giving in and dialing.

“You are not supposed to be calling,” Marcus huffed on the other line, and Clarke threw her head back.

“I don’t know how but I know you’re behind whatever the fuck happened today,” Clarke snapped. “You said you were going to make sure I didn’t get hurt!”

“Clarke, what are you talking about?” Marcus replied, and she let out a groan.

“First, Pike. Now, Tsing. Is Wallace next?” Clarke asked, her mind drifting to that list Marcus shared with her all those years ago. Very few people had seen that list. Very few people would know who to start picking off.

“Take a breath,” he whispered, and Clarke’s jaw clenched. She was so fucking tired of people trying to get her to calm down when she had every right to be pissed.

“My videos were leaked too. Literally anyone could watch them and see what a mess I am,” Clarke spat, thinking about how her friends would see her open up about Lexa and have all sorts of questions. Her mother would see exactly what Clarke thought of her. Anyone could watch Clarke break down if they wanted.

Even _Bellamy._ That thought chilled her entire body. Fuck, he was going to see all of it. Any anonymity she had left just went out the window and all her _horrible_ baggage was out there for anyone to see.

“Look, Tsing has a lot of enemies, Clarke. I had nothing to do with this, I promise,” he whispered, and Clarke’s jaw clenched. “But I thought I told you to stay away from Arkadia.”

“And I thought you were going to finish this years ago,” Clarke spat back.

“Clarke, I’m serious. You need to go back to Polis. You don’t want to get caught in the crossfires,” he warned, which told Clarke that he was definitely responsible for what happened today. He had someone here getting the job done, whoever it was that Marcus talked about all those years ago… someone who was _stable_ enough to get the job done.

It was hard not to be bitter about that. But he was right. Clarke was throwing a temper tantrum over this. She didn’t have the stomach for whatever it was Marcus was planning.

“I’m not going back to Polis,” Clarke huffed. She couldn’t. Her life was here. Wells was here, and he needed her. She needed to keep an eye on Roan. She needed to be here for Echo and Raven, in case they needed anything. And she didn’t want to say goodbye to Bellamy just yet… not when she was just getting to know him.

 

“Clarke, where the hell have you been?” her mother snapped as soon as Clarke walked in the door. Clarke gave over a once over, before heading toward the living room.

“I had to make some phone calls,” Clarke muttered, and Thelonious walked back into the room with a strange look on his face. Well, it was probably time for some damage control, and the video Echo leaked probably wasn’t helping.

“Clarke, you need to understand that the recording was from a very difficult day. That’s obviously not how I feel. I was just venting,” her mother explained, and Clarke turned back to look at her.

“Can you spare me the lies? There’s no one to impress here,” Clarke huffed, narrowing her eyes at her mother.

“Clarke, your mother is trying to apologize,” Thelonious tried to explain, and Clarke erupted into laughter. The words _I’m sorry_ didn’t even leave her mother’s lips.

“That woman hasn’t said the words ‘I’m sorry’ since the day my dad died,” Clarke snapped with a wicked smile. “Now, if you will all excuse me, I need to get a few of my things,” she huffed, moving toward the stairs. There was no way in hell she could stay here tonight.

“You know, Clarke, your therapy recordings are on that website too. It’s not like you didn’t say horrible things about me,” her mother snapped, and Clarke whipped her head around quickly.

“And I meant every word,” Clarke grinned. _Nothing_ Clarke said even came close to what her mother said.

“So, what? Are you just going to throw your temper tantrum and run back to Polis?” she huffed.

“Absolutely not,” Clarke said, stepping toward her. “Because that’s exactly what you’re secretly hoping I’ll do.”

“And what exactly are you planning on doing here, Clarke? Throwing more charity events and doing your little sketches?” Thelonious mocked, and Clarke’s jaw clenched as she eyed her mother. No, they would both love it if that was how Clarke spent her time.

“You’re right. I should really find something more worthwhile to spend my time doing,” Clarke smirked, and her mother’s eyes widened… clearly picking up on what Clarke was implying. There was one thing she could be doing while in Arkadia. She could make a run for Griffin Global. And Clarke was at the point that she would do it just to spite her.

“Clarke,” her mother warned, but Clarke was already jogging up the stairs.

 

Clarke was sitting in her car, back in the parking lot of Echo’s apartment building. But she didn’t go up. She wasn’t really ready to deal with Echo and Raven just yet. Then, her phone started ringing.

“Thanks for calling me back,” Clarke said, and Indra let out a huff.

“Clarke, I’m looking at the news coverage of what went down today. Please tell me you’re staying out of trouble,” she groaned, and Clarke smirked. Of course, Indra suspected Clarke was in legal trouble.

“I’m not in trouble. I’m in the spotlight, but what else is new?” Clarke teased, and Indra let out a groan.

“You know I’m billing you by the minute.”

“You know I can afford it,” Clarke retorted, and her phone started beeping. She pulled it away to see that Bellamy was calling her. She’d have to call him back. “Look, I was wondering if you ever got around to looking at my dad’s will again, specifically about Griffin Global.”

“Clarke, I keep telling you that it’s very specific. You can’t get around it for another six years or unless you’re anticipating getting married soon,” Indra replied, and Clarke rolled her eyes.

“It was also specific that my mother was supposed to be CEO until I was eligible,” Clarke recalled. “What were to happen in the event that my mother stepped down as CEO?”

“Is this a hypothetical or is this actually happening?”

“Right now, a hypothetical. But she’s getting a lot of bad press these days. Griffin Global has a strict morality clause, and if anything bad about her got out, she might be forced out.”

“That wouldn’t happen when your family owns most of the stock,” Indra explained.

“Humor me,” Clarke replied, since she was the one who technically owned most of that stock in the first place. If Clarke didn’t vote the same way as the family… well, her mother could be in trouble.

“Uh, well, I’ll take another look at it. But odds are, you wouldn’t be installed as CEO early,” she explained, and Clarke nodded along. It wasn’t like Clarke even wanted Griffin Global. She just didn’t want her mother to have it either. “I’ll go over it and get back to you.”

“Thank you,” Clarke said before hanging up.

She leaned back in her seat, taking in a breath. Maybe it was just Clarke being petty…

No, this could help Echo and Raven out. There’s probably a lot of info stored in Griffin Global that could help them. As of right now, her mother has it safe and hidden. If Clarke had access… well, maybe this whole thing could be over quickly.

Or maybe Clarke really was just being petty… but it wasn’t like her mother _earned_ Griffin Global. It was given to her. She married into it. It wasn’t ever supposed to be _hers_.

Clarke glanced down at her phone, remembering that she needed to call Bellamy back. God, what was he even going to say to her? He probably saw all those videos and realized Clarke’s baggage wasn’t worth his time. And she wouldn’t even blame him.

“Hey, how are you doing?” Bellamy asked, picking up the phone on the first ring.

“I’ve had better days,” Clarke huffed. “Not crazy about days where a news crew is right outside my house.”

“I’m sorry. Where are you now?” he asked, and Clarke bit her lip.

“Driving around,” she lied. “I’m gonna check into a hotel soon. Don’t really want to be home right now, you know?”

“Well, you could come stay with me,” Bellamy suggested, and Clarke’s eyes widened. She hadn’t expected _this_. Bellamy was a nice enough guy that he would check on her… but surely, he didn’t actually want to take on the drama of her day.

“No, I wouldn’t want to impose,” Clarke sighed.

“It’s not a big deal. And I’m worried about you,” he said in that tender voice of his, and Clarke felt a small creep back onto her face.

“Okay.”

 

“Want to talk about it?” Bellamy asked.

“I mean, there’s not much to talk about,” Clarke sighed. “I’m sure you’ve seen all the videos.”

“No, I didn’t watch them,” Bellamy said, and her eyes widened. Even Wells watched those videos. _Everyone_ watched them. It was all over the gossip columns. “Although, from what I saw at the brunch, your mother is a piece of work.”

“You can say she’s a bitch. I won’t be offended,” Clarke joked, and Bellamy started laughing along. “And she’s said far worse. To my face even,” Clarke shrugged.

“Are you okay?” Bellamy asked earnestly, and Clarke’s eyes flickered back up to his. He was staring intensely at her, his brow creased with worry.

“No, but this doesn’t crack the top ten worst things that have happened to me. I’ll be fine,” Clarke deflected, but Bellamy didn’t seem to ease up. “How are you doing?” Clarke remembered to ask, since she could only imagine that it was him that Octavia was talking about in her session.

“Not bad. She needed to vent, and it wasn’t like she was that vicious about it,” he shrugged, and Clarke narrowed her eyes at him.

“Hmm. How mature of you,” she mused, smiling slightly. She followed Bellamy toward the couch, feeling warm as he wrapped his arm around her waist. Maybe today didn’t change anything for Bellamy. She rested his head on his shoulder before feeling his lips gently kiss her forehead. This was nice, Clarke realized. It was the first time since the brunch disaster that Clarke actually _felt_ better.

“I will say that Jasper got a kick out of how dramatic the charity brunch was,” Bellamy teased, and Clarke couldn’t help but giggle. From an outside perspective, it must have been _hilarious_.

“Probably looked just like reality tv,” she joked, and Bellamy started chuckling, his entire chest rumbling with his warm laughter. “Were you at least a little bit entertained?” Clarke teased as she glanced up at him.

“Nah, I was too busy worrying about you,” he replied, and Clarke felt her chest get all warm again. He was worried about _her_. And sure, any decent person should have been a little worried about Clarke after what was said… but she wasn’t used to being around decent people these days.

“Aww,” Clarke teased, poking Bellamy in the side.

“Stop,” he whined, grabbing her hand to keep her from poking him again.

“Make me,” Clarke teased as she giggled, before Bellamy crashed his lips against hers. As soon as her lips parted, he moaned into her mouth. Clarke’s hand ended up pulling on the back of his neck, desperate to get him as close as possible.

“I win,” he smirked against her lips. Clarke took his bottom lip between her lips, biting down gently. Her fingers found their way into his curls, and she was amazed at how soft his hair felt. And _fuck_ she wanted to mess it all up.

“You sure about that?” Clarke whispered, pressing a quick peck to his lips. Then, she climbed over him, straddling his lap, before she crashed her lips back into his. Her hair was falling in her face as she gripped his face between her hands. He whimpered into her mouth as soon as her tongue found his.

Clarke’s lips dragged across his cheek as she made her way to his jawline. She could feel his hands slowly creeping up beneath her sweater, the bare skin he was touching feeling on fire.

“Okay, you win,” he murmured as Clarke continued kissing down his neck. She glanced up at him, seeing his eyes fluttered closed and a gorgeous smile on his lips. He looked so happy and at peace… a lot like how Clarke was feeling at the moment. She sat up and ran her fingers through his soft curls, then pressed a quick kiss to his lips. He leaned forward as she tried to pull away, his lips forming a small pout as she smirked at him.

“And what exactly do I win?”

“Whatever the hell you want,” he replied, his voice low as his hands slid farther up her shirt. She wanted _him_ , she realized. Fuck, she wanted him. She wanted to spend her night messing up his hair and losing herself in him.

She resumed her assault on his neck, pressing frantic kisses until she reached his ear. “Well, I want you,” she whispered, feeling Bellamy’s grip on her tighten at those words. Then, his fingers tangled themselves in her hair, tugging her off his neck before slamming his lips against hers. She wrapped her arms tightly around his neck, moaning into his mouth as she grinded into him.

After a few more moments of heated kissing, he pulled her off the couch, practically dragging her to his bedroom. Frankly, Clarke didn’t care if they never made it to a bed. She wanted him _now_.

She pushed him up against the wall of the hallway, kissing down his throat. Then, Bellamy ran his fingers through her hair again, tugging back to expose her neck to him. His lips crashed against her throat as Clarke started undoing her jeans. He could take her against this wall if he wanted. Clarke just needed _him_.

Just outside the door, Clarke tugged his shirt off as she kicked off her shoes.

By the time they actually got to his room, they were both in varying states of undress. He practically tore her sweater off, and a loud “fuck” escaped his lips as he eyed her. Then, his large hands enveloped her breasts, his eyes staring at them lustfully.

Once she got his pants off, he dragged her to the bed. She climbed on top of him, grinding down on his erection as she pressed a slow kiss to his lips. Then, he lifted his hips, grinding back into her, and Clarke whimpered in anticipation.

And when she tugged her bra off, his jaw literally dropped. She closed her eyes as she felt his hands cup her breasts gently. Fuck, how had she never noticed that he had such large hands…

That gentleness didn’t last long, since he flipped her aggressively onto her back, his lips pressing searing kissing down her body as his hands squeezed her heavy breasts.

“Bellamy,” she whimpered as soon as his lips found her nipple. He kept his eyes on her as his tongue circled her nipple, and she swore he was trying to kill her. Then, his lips enveloped her nipple and started sucking, and Clarke threw her head back in a loud moan.

“So sexy,” she heard him whisper before feeling his lips kissing their way across her chest. And when his lips found her other nipple, she clenched her eyes shut again. She could feel his hand slowly sliding down her body, cupping her mound as Clarke grinded into his hand.

“Please,” Clarke begged, looking at Bellamy as he teased the elastic of her panties.

“Please, what? I’ll do anything you want, baby. Just tell me, very specifically, what that is,” he said before pressing a small kiss to her nipple.

“I want you inside of me, Bellamy,” Clarke pleaded, watching a smirk grow on his lips. Fuck, she loved that smirk. He kept his dark eyes trained on her as he tugged her panties off. And as soon as he tugged his briefs off, Clarke was on him, moaning into his mouth desperately. He had teased her long enough.

Then, Bellamy rolled her onto her back. “Patience,” Bellamy smirked as he tried to get a condom on. She let her eyes graze over him again, realizing she hadn’t paid attention to just how beautiful his body was. Before she could say anything, Bellamy was on her again, spreading her legs apart. Then, his fingers dipped into hers. “Somebody’s eager,” he teased before kissing her.

“Bellamy,” she pleaded, before feeling the head of his cock bump against her clit. And when he pressed into her… Clarke’s mind went blank again. All she could think about was how perfectly he was stretching her out.

“Is this what you wanted, sweetheart?” he whispered once he was fully seated in her, and Clarke started nodding rapidly. Then, his lips pressed a slow kiss to her forehead, before he pulled out again. And once he slammed back into her, she was gripping onto his hair, trying to get some leverage as she crashed her lips back into his.

She was whimpering into his mouth with every thrust, clinging to him more and more desperately.

And when his fingers reached down to start rubbing her clit… Clarke knew she wouldn’t last long. He felt too good, too perfect. He couldn’t be real. This couldn’t be real.

But it was, and he was here, and he was making her feel _so good_.

“Come on, sweetheart,” he whispered against her lips, and Clarke’s face flushed at that endearment… it was so tender compared to how he was pounding into her. And she loved it. “Come for me,” he pleaded, and Clarke desperately kissed him again. She couldn’t even stop herself from moaning into his mouth.

“Bellamy,” she moaned as his lips started sucking below her jaw, and fuck, she was gone. Her voice sounded wrecked as she started whimpering his name desperately, her nails raking up and down his neck as she pulsated around his cock.

Moments later, she felt his grip on her hair tighten as he growled into her neck… and she knew he was lost too.

After he pulled out of her, they both lied there breathlessly, unable to form words just yet. Then, she felt him move closer to her and she turned to look at him. He had this sweet smile on his face, and she couldn’t help but press a slow kiss to his lips. And she had a matching smile as soon as he pulled her into his chest, pressing a sloppy kiss to her cheek.

 

Clarke woke up to feeling Bellamy pulling her closer to him. Then, she felt his lips sleepily drag across her shoulder.

“Morning,” she mumbled.

“Good morning,” he said huskily and pressed a kiss to her cheek. She turned to look back at him, blinking her eyes open to see him smiling at her. He looked so damn happy she was there.

And Clarke was happy to be here. Clarke was _happy_ , which shouldn’t be such a world shattering realization, but it was. Clarke never got to be happy. Clarke really didn’t deserve to be happy. But here she was with Bellamy, and she was _happy_.

Clarke readjusted herself so she could face him, and Bellamy pulled her toward his chest. She closed her eyes again, feeling the wonderful sensation of Bellamy’s lips against her forehead.

She could feel herself start to fall back asleep, comfortable here with Bellamy. _She could keep being happy here_. And maybe there could be a future with Bellamy. Maybe she could at least have this.

“Fuck,” she heard Bellamy mumble, and Clarke sat up and rubbed her eyes sleepily. She glanced over at Bellamy who had a panicked expression on his face as he turned the tv on.

“What’s wrong?” Clarke asked.

“Clarke,” he said, his eyes widening as he stared at the screen, and Bellamy turned to see what he was seeing.

“Many are speculating this had something to do with the leaked videos from Dr. Lorelei Tsing’s work computer,” the announcer explained, and Clarke realized this footage was taken just outside Tsing’s office building… and there was police tape everywhere. “A source inside the police department confirmed that this is a murder investigation.” And Clarke’s stomach dropped. _Tsing was killed_.

Dr. Lorelei Tsing. One of the few people who had all the information about what happened at Mt. Weather. She had been murdered.

“Holy fuck,” she whispered. Clarke reached over and grabbed her phone. And her phone was blowing up with frantic texts from her mother, Echo, Wells… even one from Roan. This was bad. This was so bad.


	4. Truth

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, this is an emotional chapter. Clarke snaps. I'll leave it at that. 
> 
> Anyway, thanks for all the comments and support I've gotten so far. I finally finished my other multi-chapter, meaning all my focus can go into these updates (which should mean they'll start coming out faster again).

“Right this way, Miss Griffin,” a familiar looking officer said, and Clarke narrowed her eyes at him as she brushed past him on her way into his office.

“Have we met before?” Clarke asked.

“It’s possible. My name is Officer Shumway,” he introduced himself, and Clarke gave him a once over as she sat down. She had only just started to calm down after pushing past all the cameras outside the police station, and she was still rattled about the news about Lorelei Tsing. “Your step-father is an old friend of mine.”

Then, Clarke’s stomach dropped. She knew where she knew him from. This was the same officer she saw Thelonious handing that envelope to… not too long after the Mt. Weather explosion. She was fairly certain.

“So, Miss Griffin, I’m sure you have seen the news about Lorelei Tsing,” he started, and Clarke nodded, glancing around his office. There wasn’t anything out of the ordinary, no cameras, no obvious evidence that points to him being one of Thelonious’ men… not that there would be, of course. “First off, I need to know where you were last night between the hours of one and three in the morning.”

Clarke swallowed, realizing that at anonymity that Bellamy had been enjoying was about to go out the window. The greatest drawback of dating someone in this family, unfortunately. “I was at Bellamy Blake’s apartment.”

“Would Bellamy Blake happen to be related to Octavia Blake?” he asked, flipping through his suspect list.

“Yes, he is her older brother.”

“And can Mr. Blake account for your whereabouts between the hours of one a.m. to three a.m.?” he asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Yes, the two of us were in bed together all night,” Clarke answered through gritted teeth, hating the way his eyes lit up at those words.

“Well, I will confirm that story with him, of course. Anyway, thank you for coming down here, Miss Griffin,” he said, and Clarke cocked her head to the side. He should have more questions for her.

Then, she remembered he is likely in Thelonious’ pocket. As he stood up, Clarke started an audio recording on her phone, before leaving it on the chair beside her.

“I trust you will stay in town,” Officer Shumway said as Clarke walked out the door.

“Of course. If there is any way I can help the investigation, do not hesitate to call,” Clarke smiled sweetly, before walking into the lobby. She beelined for the bathroom and paced in there for a few minutes. Then, she stepped out and made her way to Shumway’s secretary’s desk.

“Excuse me, but I think I left my phone in his office. Could I just knock on his door to see if it’s there?” Clarke asked sweetly.

“Yeah, go ahead,” the secretary replied, and Clarke made her way back toward his office. She did a light knock, before pushing the door open.

“Sorry,” Clarke mouthed apologetically. “Left my phone,” she whispered, and Shumway shot her a suspicious look as he waited for her to leave to resume his phone call.

She waited until after she had pushed past the camera crews and got into her car before she played the recording.

“Yes, I just met with her,” Shumway said on the recording, and Clarke swallowed. “I don’t think you have anything to worry about, but I’ll call you once Abby comes in to update you.”

There was a long pause in the recording, where Clarke imagined that Thelonious was ranting his instructions to him.

“Just bring it by when you come to make your statement,” Shumway replied casually, and Clarke started tapping on her wheel. “There is one thing you might want to know about, sir. Her alibi is Bellamy Blake. I just thought you would want to know who your daughter is spending time with, in case you wanted me to look into the kid.”

Clarke’s face went red. She was only just now getting to know Bellamy and now he was getting thrown into this mess. He was going to be dragged in to confirm her alibi, and now her family was going to know about him… and it was just too damn much.

 

“I don’t know what to tell you, Clarke,” Indra sighed, and Clarke threw her head back. “If for some reason Abby has to step down, you get absolutely no say in who replaces her.”

“Which means whoever it is could just be her puppet,” Clarke groaned, burying her face in her hands.

“More importantly, you’re not looking too great right now. People are saying you threw a temper tantrum and stormed out like a child,” Indra said, raising her eyebrow.

“And my mother questioned why she and my dad tried so hard to have me. How am I the one getting negative press?” Clarke huffed.

“Oh, your mother is getting her fair share, trust me,” Indra said, as she sat down beside Clarke. “But it’s kind of getting buried by the story about your new boyfriend.”

Clarke clenched her jaw… she knew that was Thelonious’ doing. Enough of a payout was enough to make the tabloids report on just about anything he wants, and the story about Clarke and Bellamy is juicy enough to distract from the rest of the family’s PR disaster.

“Can I offer you some advice?” Indra asked, and Clarke bit her lip. “You had the right idea when you first left Arkadia. Look, I’ve been around. I’ve seen what happens to people who do what you’re trying to do,” she started, raising an eyebrow. Clarke let out a sigh. She always knew that she’d never go through with trying to push her mother out of Griffin Global… it was just an idea she got when she was angry. “If I were you, I’d enjoy my new boyfriend and disappear off everyone’s radar again. Go have a happy life in some suburb. Pick up art again. I don’t think _this_ is what’s best for you, and I’m saying that as your friend.”

Clarke opened her mouth to speak, but the door flew open.

“Miss Griffin,” Dax said, and Clarke clenched her jaw. “You are needed back at the estate.”

“Tell Thelonious I am in a meeting,” Clarke snapped, standing up.  

“It was not a request,” Dax replied coolly, and Clarke shot an apologetic look at Indra.

“You can bill me for the full hour,” Clarke apologized, before grabbing her things.

She sat in silence on the whole drive back to the house, fuming in the passenger side angrily. Dax had refused to offer her any information about what she was about to walk into.

She stormed up to the house before Dax could catch up with her, slamming the door shut as she ran into the living room. And there was Thelonious sitting smugly in his chair.

“How was your meeting with Indra?” he smirked, and Clarke clenched her fist.

“Cut short when Dax dragged me out,” she growled, turning back to glare at Dax who had just caught up to her.

“He’s just following my orders, Clarke. Plus, no one needs to see you meeting with a lawyer at a time like this. Makes you look suspicious,” he teased, and Clarke glanced around the room. The whole family was here along with Ontari, Roan… and _Bellamy_.

Clarke shot him a confused look. Why was he here? He shouldn’t be here. He shouldn’t be dragged into whatever psychotic nightmare her family was up to this time.

“Oh, Ontari will explain why he’s here. Take a seat,” Thelonious said calmly, and Clarke quickly made her way over toward Bellamy and Wells. She shot him an apologetic look, but she couldn’t figure out for the life of her why he was _here_.

“Normally, I would say any press is good press, but once again you all have outdone yourself,” Ontari started.

“Just trying to create work for you,” Wells teased.

“Wells, please. This family has a huge public relations problem right now,” her mother snapped.

“It’s not like I’m the problem here,” Wells replied smugly, and Clarke couldn’t help but chuckle.

“I wouldn’t be laughing, Clarke,” Ontari sneered, and Clarke clenched her jaw. “The Griffin name is the one that’s all over the news right now.”

“Can someone explain why Bellamy got dragged into this?” Clarke huffed as she crossed her arms. He had nothing to do with what happened on Sunday, nor should he be subject to whatever strategic planning her family was up to.

“I was getting to that. Buzz about your alleged relationship is the only positive press this family has been receiving lately. So, I thought it was only fair to bring Bellamy into this strategy session,” Ontari explained, and Clarke turned to look at Bellamy. He grabbed her hand, running his thumb over the back of her hand reassuringly. Clarke shot him another apologetic look. He wouldn’t be dealing with this if her alibi hadn’t been leaked. “The public needs to see all of you acting as a functional family again. I’ve set up a press conference for Thelonious tomorrow morning. Abby, you are not to be seen out in public unless you are with Clarke and looking happy.” Clarke let out a snort accidentally, and Wells immediately elbowed her to remind her that she had to at least pretend to be a good daughter.

Then, Ontari’s eyes caught on Clarke, before moving onto Bellamy. “Whatever you’re about to suggest, the answer is no,” Clarke snapped, leaning forward. She looked over at Thelonious, who had an annoyed look on his face.

“Clarke, it’s fine,” Bellamy whispered, and Clarke glanced back at him. He seemed sincere… but he had no idea just how far her family was willing to go to keep up a charade. Then, she turned back to Ontari, shooting her a pleading look. There had to be some way to keep Bellamy out of this.

“If the media is too busy focusing on how cute Arkadia’s newest couple is, they’ll spend less time covering how you threw a temper tantrum at the charity brunch,” Ontari sneered, and Clarke’s jaw clenched. They weren’t even a _couple_. They had been out a few times and slept together once.

“Do I have a task or do I get a free pass since I’m the only person who hasn’t been screwing up lately?” Wells snapped.

“People are wondering why they haven’t been seeing you around lately. A single hermit isn’t exactly an image you should be striving for,” Ontari replied, and Clarke glanced over at Wells whose eyes were wide. No, Thelonious and her mother wouldn’t agree to this. She glanced over at Thelonious, and her heart sank. _No_.

“Surely, Clarke must have a friend to introduce you to,” he suggested, and Clarke could feel the heat rise up to her cheeks.

“Thelonious,” she growled, and he stood up, buttoning his jacket as he stood.

“Clarke, please step into my study. I’m sure you and I can come to an agreement.”

She stormed after him, waiting until the door was shut behind her before growling, “You have lost your damn mind.” She plopped down across from him as he got comfortable at his desk.

“Clarke, you know by now how this works. I’ve already made my mind up about this plan. And by the end of this discussion, you’re going to go along with it,” he replied, and Clarke threw her head back.

“It’s unnecessary,” she groaned. “This will all blow over once they find out who killed Dr. Tsing.” Although, Clarke had the creeping suspicion that Thelonious had something to do with it. After all, he couldn’t risk Lorelei turning on him once she started going down.

“No, it won’t. Your mother is suspect number one, Clarke. We need to look like a perfect family again. Public perception is everything,” he replied, and Clarke could give this damn speech in her sleep. They have to craft public opinion for them so no one would ever think any of them were capable of being anything less than upstanding citizens… blah blah blah.

“You can’t drag Wells back into the spotlight. He needs time,” Clarke reminded him, and for a moment, Thelonious actually looked concerned for his son. He should be, considering he was the one who offered his damn boyfriend a payout to leave him.

“I agree. But we can’t all get what we need. Once this is all past us, Wells can fade back into the background and get his life back together. Wells and Abby have already agreed to my terms. All I need is your compliance,” he said, raising an eyebrow at her.

“A negotiation requires me getting something I want, Thelonious. And you have nothing I want,” Clarke replied.

“Oh, I’ve been saving something for a rainy day,” he smirked, and Clarke’s stomach dropped. He leaned forward smugly. “In exchange for you distracting the media with your new little boyfriend and playing nice with your mother, I offer you my silence.” Clarke knew there was no point in asking, since he was clearly itching to tell her about whatever dirt he found, so she waited. “Did you really think I didn’t know that you were never in med school? In fact, for most of the past two years, you weren’t even in Polis.” Clarke’s eyes widened as she held her breath. “Now, you were discreet about this and covered all your bases, so I don’t see any reason why this can’t stay between us.”

 _This_ was something that she didn’t want anyone to know about, especially not him. “You haven’t told your own wife?” Clarke asked, and he started chuckling. Well, he wouldn’t be chuckling if he knew what _exactly_ Clarke had been up to.

“And throw this opportunity away? Absolutely not. Although, I’m sure if she knew, she would have all sorts of questions about what you’ve been doing all this time and why you went to such a great length to convince everyone you were in Polis.”

 _Perhaps it was just so she could hide from the people who would want to kill her for what her family did to Mt. Weather_ , she wanted to scream, but she forced herself to take a deep breath. “I’m sure you have similar questions,” she said.

“The difference is that as long as whatever it is you’re hiding doesn’t surface, I don’t really care. Now, do we have a deal?”

“Yes. This conversation doesn’t leave this room,” Clarke demanded.

“I will say, it was clever how you pulled it off,” Thelonious said as he stood up. “You’re smart, like your father.”

“Thank you,” Clarke mumbled.

“But I was smarter than your father. Remember that, next time,” he snapped, before opening his door.

Clarke shakily stepped out into the living room, her eyes immediately meeting Wells’.

“How does Harper McIntyre sound?” Clarke asked apologetically, seeing the pain flash across Wells’ face.

“Oh, I like her. Good choice, sweetie,” her mother offered, but Clarke looked back at Thelonious to see if that would suffice. He offered her a nod, and Clarke felt like she was going to throw up.

“Let’s move this meeting to the kitchen, so we can talk strategy for the press conference,” Ontari announced, and Wells immediately rushed up the stairs.

She just stood there frozen, playing over what just happened over again. She was never going to win with Thelonious. Not while she was back in Arkadia. Maybe Indra was right after all…

Once everyone else left, Clarke walked over to Bellamy. “I’m so sorry,” she pleaded, and his worried face scanned over her face.

“Hey, it’s fine,” he reassured, rubbing her upper arm with his hand.

“You shouldn’t have been dragged into this. I’m sorry about all the articles and you being dragged here…” Clarke sighed, clenching her eyes shut to will herself to keep from crying in front of Bellamy.

“Clarke, I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t want to be,” he said, and Clarke’s eyes fluttered open, shocked by the words coming out of his mouth. She couldn’t help but smile up at him, amazed that somehow she found someone like him in this damn city. She leaned up to press a short kiss to his lips, and a small grin formed on his lips as he beamed back at her.

“You’re wonderful, you know that?” she said, as Bellamy wrapped his arms around her.

“I try,” he smirked before kissing her forehead. And for a moment, Clarke felt at peace.

Then, she remembered Wells. “I’ll be right back,” she pulled away. “Need to go check on Wells,” she explained, before making her way toward the stairs. Once out of eyesight, she sprinted toward Wells’ room, to find him sobbing on his bed.

“Hey,” he murmured. “How bad is this for you?”

“Not as bad as it is for you,” Clarke said as she toed off her heels before climbing in bed next to him.

“I saw your face when you came out of the office. It’s bad,” he mumbled, and Clarke wrapped her arms around him.

“It’s nothing I wouldn’t do for you a thousand times over,” Clarke said, although she could feel her eyes start to well up again.

“They’ll never let us be happy, will they?” he asked, and that’s when her tears started to fall.

“We’ll find a way to be happy anyway, okay?”

 

She let herself into Echo’s apartment, seeing Echo and Raven working on their bulletin board of news articles.

“What did you find on Shumway?” Clarke asked, and Raven turned around with a smirk on her face.

“Dirty cop. Takes a lot of bribes. Definitely in Jaha’s pocket. And one of the first officers on the scene—”

“Just a bad guy who was definitely in on the Mt. Weather stuff,” Echo interrupted, and Clarke shot her a confused look. “What? You don’t want to know about this stuff, right?”

“Okay, I was the one to point Shumway out to you,” Clarke reminded her, crossing her arms. “So, what are you two going to do with this?”

“Nothing yet. We have a different target right now,” Raven replied, and Clarke raised an eyebrow. “Alie.”

Ah, the woman responsible for detonating the bombs and covering everyone’s tracks… yeah, if they got her, the whole house of cards would fall. “I thought you guys couldn’t find her,” Clarke mused.

“No, but you could,” Raven said, before Echo smacked her shoulder. “What? She could.”

“Echo…” Clarke groaned, crossing her arms.

“Okay, I let it slip that Thelonious gave you her private number in case you ever got into trouble,” Echo mumbled, and Clarke took a deep breath.

“Why on earth would I call Alie?”

“I don’t know, but you could find an excuse and we could get a trail to at least figure out what fucking continent she is currently on,” Raven huffed, throwing herself down on the couch.

“And I told Raven that it is too dangerous,” Echo replied, using Clarke’s exact wording. She couldn’t just use Alie without arousing suspicion from the family. “But literally no one but a Griffin or a Jaha could make that phone call to Alie without Alie figuring out exactly what we’re doing.”

“Maybe if you guys get closer, then I’ll do it. But not this early,” Clarke groaned. She could faintly see the list of potential Mt. Weather victim family members who might have been enlisted by Marcus Kane… since there was no way any of this was a coincidence after what happened to Tsing. But they were no closer to figuring out who that was than to getting to Alie.

 

“You were in med school before you moved back, right?” Bellamy asked, trying his best to ignore the flash of a camera from outside the window. Clarke reached over to grab his hand reassuringly.

“Yeah, for two years,” Clarke lied, and Bellamy furrowed his brows.

“And how did you like it?” he asked, turning his head slightly so his facial expressions could be out of the cameras shot, and Clarke started chuckling.

“It was fine, but wasn’t for me,” Clarke replied safely. “So, does Octavia want to come to the dinner on Friday? My mom is working on the seating chart,” Clarke changed the subject.

“Yeah, she would,” Bellamy replied, before taking a sip of wine. “So, what was your favorite class in med school?”

“Physiology II. Only got an A- though because of how tough the teacher was,” she lied, and Bellamy narrowed his eyes at her… almost skeptically. She shook her head at that, of course. He was probably just curious since Clarke always avoided talking about it. “But like I said, it wasn’t for me. I prefer art.”

Getting out of the restaurant was a bit tricky, since they were mobbed with cameras again. But once they were in the car, they both sucked in a deep breath.

“Please tell me your entire life hasn’t been like this,” he smirked, glancing over at her.

“Only occasionally. Like I said, I’ve spent most of my life outside of Arkadia,” Clarke reminded him, and he nodded along.

“Right, boarding school and then Polis, I remember,” he said as he started the car. “You know, I don’t think I’ve ever been to Polis.”

“Oh, it’s great. You should definitely go sometime. I loved it enough to live there for two years,” Clarke lied, and she was starting to feel bad about just how many time she had to lie to Bellamy tonight. Then, she noticed he was going the route he would go if he were driving her back to her house. “You aren’t going to make me go home, are you?” she pouted, and he glanced over at her with a smirk.

“I was going to…” he smirked, shaking his head slightly. “Would you rather come back to my place?” he asked, but he was already switching lanes anyway. They had already had this same exact discussion two nights in a row now, and it always led to the two of them clawing at each other’s clothes on their way to his bed.

And that night was no exception.

“Clarke Griffin, you are going to be the death of me,” he teased as she unbuttoned his shirt, backing him into his bed.

“But what a fun death that would be,” she teased, and he leaned forward to bite her bottom lip. And he was likely going to be the death of her, she realized. She felt so much more alive and happy whenever she was around him, even when it was being kind of forced by her family. Maybe _this_ could be something.

Clarke threw her head back as soon as Bellamy pushed her down onto the bed, running his lips down her neck quickly. She put the thought of running away from Arkadia out of her head as soon as his lips crashed back into hers. No, she needed to see what this was first. Then, maybe if it came down to it, he’d disappear with her and they could be _happy_.

 

“He’s back in Arkadia,” Echo said as she walked into Clarke’s bedroom, and Clarke turned around quickly, raising her eyebrows. “Marcus Kane arrived earlier this week.”

Clarke swallowed. She knew this was a possibility. After all, she could see his handiwork all over the chaos that had settled into Arkadia in these past few weeks. “So, you’ll be able to figure out who he is working with,” Clarke realized, and Echo nodded along. “What will you do?”

“Don’t know yet. Raven and I were talking about it,” Echo sighed.

“You haven’t told Roan?” Clarke asked, crossing her arms.

“No… he hasn’t been really invested lately,” Echo said carefully, which told Clarke that she no longer trusted him. “I think we’ll watch their movements. If they seem like team players, perhaps we could work something out. If not, I still want to know who they’re pursuing for my own plan’s sake.”

Clarke walked over to her closet, pulling out a pair of heels. She was running late, of course. “Are you doing anything I need to know about for tonight?” Clarke huffed.

“No, I’m just here because you asked me to be,” Echo replied, and Clarke turned back to look at her. She was telling the truth, and Clarke let out a breath.

“Thanks. Now, let’s get this shit show over with,” Clarke smirked, and the two of them made their way down the hallway toward the stairs.

Luckily, her mother kept her busy in the kitchen, which meant Clarke hardly had to mingle with anyone. Echo stuck by her side, helping her rearrange cheese plates that were completely fine to start with… not that anyone ever listened to Clarke.

She let out a sigh of relief as soon as her mom went back toward the living room, and shot Echo an annoyed look.

“Hey, at least you have a hot date,” she teased, and Clarke ducked her head. “Still don’t like him, though.”

“You don’t like anyone,” Clarke groaned, linking arms with her as she pulled her toward the living room.

“Not true. I sort of like you and Raven is growing on me,” she deadpanned, and Clarke sighed. Then, she caught a glimpse of Cage Wallace, before shooting Echo a pleading look. Echo nodded knowingly, and immediately broke away to intercept Cage before he got close enough to talk to Clarke. Then, Clarke spotted Bellamy and beelined toward him.

Her eyes flickered to the man hugging her mother… a man she hadn’t seen since she was eighteen. Her eyes widened, not expecting Marcus Kane to turn up for a little while longer. But here he was, back in the center of Arkadia’s more elite social circle, as if nothing had changed.

She blinked a few times, making sure she wasn’t just staring at him like she had just seen a ghost. Marcus broke away from his hug as soon as he saw her, and enveloped her in a quick hug. “Clarke, you look so grown up.”

“Clarke, you remember Marcus, right?” her mother asked, and Clarke remembered that as far as her mother knew, Clarke hadn’t seen him since around the time of the Mt. Weather explosion.

“Of course,” Clarke recovered, forcing the biggest grin she could muster.

“Yes, well, as I just discovered, Marcus is also Bellamy’s adopted father,” Thelonious explained, and Clarke’s eyes found Bellamy’s. _No_ , she pleaded.

“Marcus, I didn’t know you had kids. When did this happen?” her mother asked, but Clarke kept her eyes on Bellamy. _There are no coincidences_ , she remembered Marcus once tell her when he was trying to convince her that she wasn’t crazy, that she actually remembered the events of Mt. Weather correctly, that there was a woman named Aurora who her father talked on the phone with that day, that what _happened_ to her father that was a lot more than a hit and run.

“Uh, I think back in 2007 maybe. I’m bad with years,” Marcus replied, and Clarke’s stomach dropped. He first found her in 2006, and when she found him years later, he told her he found someone else a year after he met with her. _There are no coincidences_.

Bellamy seemed unbothered by the panic that had taken over Clarke, probably not noticing. Instead, he took off toward his sister. _She was probably in on this too_.

Clarke mumbled an excuse, before heading toward the kitchen. She made it outside before the hyperventilating began. Within seconds, Echo was out there with her.

“Clarke, talk to me,” Echo pleaded, and Clarke shook her head as she rested her hands above her head.

“It’s Bellamy,” she murmured, clenching her eyes shut. “Marcus adopted him and Octavia a year after I had my breakdown,” she panted.

“Clarke.”

“He’s using me, right?” Clarke asked, jerking her eyes open to plead with Echo. “That’s what this has been this whole time, right? There’s no other explanation,” Clarke mumbled, and Echo gripped Clarke’s face between her hands.

“Breathe,” Echo ordered, and Clarke took a deep breath… but that ache was still in her chest. “Look, we’ll get to the bottom of whatever this is, but we have to get through tonight first. You can’t have a breakdown right now without tipping everyone off. Your parents will want answers, and we don’t have them. And it’s not like you can confront Bellamy about this until you _know_.”

“I know,” Clarke realized, glancing around Echo to peer into the window. She could vaguely make out Bellamy chatting with Octavia. She thought back to when they met… how Octavia seemed determined to flirt with Wells. And when that didn’t work, just moments later, Bellamy was introducing himself to her. “I was a mark. He’s been playing me this whole time,” she whispered, pushing a tear off her face. She pulled her phone out of her pocket, already knowing exactly who she needed to call. She needed all the facts.

“Clarke,” Echo warned.

“You want Alie, right? Well, two birds, one stone,” Clarke growled through gritted teeth, and Echo put her hands up defensively as she backed towards the house. She scrolled through her contacts until she found the number, and hit call.

“What kind of trouble could the littlest Griffin have gotten into?” a woman’s voice teased, and Clarke forced herself to take a deep breath.

“I wouldn’t call it trouble,” Clarke answered carefully. In fact, she had to tread very carefully with this Alie woman. If Bellamy was indeed working with Marcus, she shouldn’t tip Alie off to what they’re doing… no matter how pissed Clarke might be. “But I do need your help.”

“Tell me what you need and I’ll find it for you,” Alie said smugly, and Clarke stepped away from the house.

“What I want needs to be very private. No trace of what we’re up to. I don’t want…” Clarke trailed off, thinking through what she was going to say carefully, “my step-father to know what I’m up to.”

“Well, you’re in luck. That man is dead to me after he shorted me last time,” she huffed, and Clarke could still feel her hands shaking.

“I want to meet in person. I’m worried he has someone else tracking what I’m up to,” Clarke sighed.

“Oh, he does,” she replied, and Clarke’s stomach dropped. Of course, Alie knew if someone was watching Clarke. “And meeting in person is going to cost you.”

“Name your price,” Clarke said sternly.

“I’ll take my usual fee, and we’ll negotiate higher when I find out what you really want from me,” she teased, and Clarke bit her lip.

“Yeah, that works for me. Same account as last time?”

“I’ll send you the new information. I’ve had to move some money around. You understand,” she snickered.

“Okay, thanks a lot, Alie,” Clarke said, before hanging up. She took a deep breath. She could do this. She’d meet with Alie, and work on a clever way to find out about Bellamy without Alie learning anything about him.

“You okay?” she heard Bellamy ask, and Clarke jumped before turning around.

“God, you scared me,” Clarke huffed, giving him a once over. He looked… concerned, not suspicious, which she took as a good sign.

“Is everything alright?” he asked, stepping toward her, and Clarke felt like she was going to throw up.

“Yeah, of course. Just needed to call one of my friends from Polis back,” she lied, and his lips twitched. “So, how is the lion’s den treating you?” she tried to joke, but it fell flat. She could see Echo through the window, looking at them with a concerned look on her face.

“It’d be better if I had you by my side more,” he smirked.

 

She spent most of the dinner avoiding conversation with Bellamy, even though he repeatedly checked up on her. She was too busy playing over every strange event that had occurred since he got to town. First, Pike’s business going under. Then, Tsing’s charity blow up… which meant _Bellamy_ was the one to leak those videos of Clarke.

She was fairly certain he had nothing to do with what happened to Tsing, of course… although, she wasn’t sure if she could be certain. Every single thing Bellamy had told her could have been a lie. Everything else was a lie, after all.

 _All of it was a lie_ , she realized. None of it was real, not even for a moment.

“You really have been handling what happened to Tsing well,” Diana Sydney said to her mother, and without thinking, Clarke gripped onto Bellamy’s hand under the table. When she realized her mistake, it was too late, because he was holding onto her hand tightly. She kept her eyes focused on the food in front of her, thinking only about breathing. Only a little while longer and she could be free.

“We all have to be careful about who we trust. I’m just devastated that I didn’t get a chance to apologize to her about how I acted before it was too late,” her mother replied.

“I can only imagine how hard this must be for all of you, especially considering how long you have known her,” Diana replied, and Clarke put her fork down. She wasn’t going to be able to eat a damn thing.

“Yes, she was practically a member of the family after she helped us all through Jake’s death. Isn’t that right, sweetie?” her mother asked, looking directly at her. All Clarke could do was nod, trying to put her memories of Tsing “helping” Clarke out of her head.

“She was lucky to have you all as friends. I was really worried about her after that patient of hers committed suicide,” Mrs. Wallace said, and Clarke picked up her fork again, now moving around the remaining food on her plate.

“Oh, Aurora Blake haunted Tsing for years,” Diana replied, and Clarke’s head jerked up. _Aurora Blake_.

There are no coincidences. That Aurora had to be the same one who Clarke remembered from the phone call…

 _Wait_ , Clarke realized as soon as she felt Bellamy’s eyes boring into her. _Blake_.

 

She didn’t need a hacker to confirm. All she had to do was google it once she got up to her room. Bellamy and Octavia were the children of the late Aurora Blake, who committed suicide the same day that her father was killed in that hit and run. Aurora Blake was one of her father’s Griffin Global employees.

Bellamy and Octavia Blake had _every_ reason to come after her family. Clarke wished that was comforting… that they were just doing what they had to. But somehow, Clarke had convinced herself she was happy, only to miss that none of it was real.

After a sleepless night, Clarke stumbled into Echo’s apartment, where she and Raven were already at work. “What’s the plan?” Clarke snapped, and Echo’s eyes dropped to the floor.

“I’m going with you to meet Alie,” Raven explained, and Clarke cocked her head to the side. “We’re going to trick her into thinking the authorities are onto her.”

“The idea is that Alie will be so rattled and in need of cash that she’ll do just about anything if you pay her well,” Echo explained, and Clarke nodded along. “If she really thinks she’s fucked, she’ll want to erase any trace of her. So, when you offer to buy her program, she’ll hand it over.”

“Meaning I can get my answers without her finding out what Bellamy is up to,” Clarke put it together, rubbing her temples with her fingers. Her phone started buzzing, and she looked down to see another phone call from Bellamy.

“And Raven gets access to the very system that destroyed Mt. Weather,” Echo added in, and Clarke glanced over at Raven, who looked almost giddy at the possibility. “Clarke, are you sure you’re up for this? I know you’re upset after finding out—”

“I’m fine,” Clarke yelled, and Raven stepped in between them, putting her hands on Clarke’s shoulders.

“You get to be angry, Clarke. He is using you,” Raven said, and Clarke swallowed. “He leaked Tsing’s videos. He’s who sent you the video of me and Finn,” she explained, and Clarke’s eyes widened. She hadn’t even considered that he would go to _those_ lengths.

“Clarke,” Echo said, and Clarke turned her head. “Come on,” she gestured, and Clarke pulled away from Raven to follow Echo into one of the spare bedrooms that Echo had converted into a miniature gym. She tossed gloves over to Clarke, and Clarke let out a groan. “Put them on, and hit me. You know you’ll feel better,” Echo snapped, tugging her own gloves on. Clarke glanced back, seeing Raven curiously watching them from the doorway as Clarke tugged hers on.

“This isn’t going to work,” Clarke groaned, and Echo took the first swing, smacking Clarke right on the cheek.

“Not if you’re too busy trying to suck in all your anger until you inevitably blow up. Now, hit me,” Echo snapped, and Clarke swung and missed.

“Is this where we tell Clarke she hits like a girl?” Raven teased, and Echo raised an eyebrow before hitting Clarke below the jaw.

“No, because girls know how to hit,” Echo teased, baiting Clarke… but Clarke wasn’t going to hit her just yet. Instead, she waited for Echo to get impatient and lunge forward again, and Clarke punched her right across the face, catching her by surprise.

“Was that good enough?” Clarke snapped, and Echo took a quick lunge, missing when Clarke dodged. Then, Clarke hit her again, this time in the stomach.

“There’s the Griffin I remember,” Echo smirked, and Clarke took another swing at her, only getting a light hit to her shoulder. “How many punches is it going to take?” Echo asked, dodging Clarke’s next swing. “Is hitting me going do help you?”

“No,” Clarke groaned.

“You’re not really hitting me, are you? Who are you hitting?” Echo asked, dodging yet another blow, before shoving Clarke backwards.

“Marcus. That’s who I’m pissed at,” Clarke growled, and Echo literally chuckled, and Clarke hit her right in the nose.

“Who are you really pissed at, Clarke? Because Marcus isn’t the person who broke your heart,” Echo snapped, and Clarke punched her again in the stomach.

“If you’re gonna get angry, at least be angry at the right person,” Echo snapped breathlessly, and Clarke started ripping off her gloves, throwing them to the ground. Echo followed after her, tossing her gloves to the side.

“Bellamy had a good reason for what he did,” Clarke muttered, and Echo pushed her back against a wall, pinning her there with a warning look on her face.

“His mother died because she knew something about Mt. Weather. So, fucking what? So did your dad,” Echo spat as Clarke tried to push her off. “You aren’t one of the monsters he was supposed to go after. He hurt you. Admit it.”

“Echo, stop!” Clarke yelled, trying to free her wrists from Echo.

“You’re keeping this all bottled up and it’s messing with you. You don’t have a clear head, and you need to if you want to go meet with Alie, Clarke. Let it all out,” Echo snapped. “So, tell me… are you okay with what Bellamy did to you?”

“No,” Clarke snapped.

“And?”

“I hate him,” Clarke muttered, breaking into a quiet sob. And Echo let go of her wrists and pulled her in for a hug. Clarke buried her face into her shoulder. “I hate him so much.”

Then, she felt something on her back, and glanced up to see Raven hugging her from behind.

“I don’t care how ‘noble’ his purpose might be, but he fucked you over, Clarke,” Echo said, looking sternly at Clarke. “I know you’re trying to convince yourself that you deserved it, but you didn’t. You didn’t blow up Mt. Weather. You didn’t kill Aurora Blake. You are an innocent. You don’t deserve this, and Bellamy _deserves_ your anger.”

Clarke tucked her head back into Echo’s shoulder, feeling Raven rubbing Clarke’s back reassuringly. “I let him in,” Clarke admitted in a sob-filled whisper. “And I don’t let people in.”

“I know,” Raven whispered.

“I let myself be happy,” she confessed.


	5. Reconaissance

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another update up! Not sure when I'll get the next one up since I've got schoolwork to catch up on. Also, later chapters will touch on what actually happens to Becca/ALIE since Clarke doesn't currently know (just FYI in case you were looking forward to that information).
> 
> Anyways, thanks for all the support! Love you guys!

“Kane adopted Octavia back in 2007, while he enrolled Bellamy in one of Tondc’s more prestigious universities,” Raven explained as she flipped to the next page on her tablet. Clarke leaned over, seeing her folders on each of them. “In general, none of his activity other than that is suspicious. He did pay a lot to make sure that Bellamy’s records stayed sealed.”

Clarke threw her head back. The past few days had been like this ever since she bought off Alie… or Becca. Right, Becca, she reminded herself. Becca was the mastermind behind the explosion, A.L.I.E. was the program she used to do it.

“You can get those records now, right?” Clarke asked, and Raven smirked.

“The database is pretty secure…” Raven shrugged, and Clarke narrowed her eyes at her. “But it won’t survive me.”

Clarke pushed herself off the couch as Raven got back to work. She moved toward the hotel room balcony, cursing herself for not at least enjoying herself in France. But it was hard to enjoy a moment when her phone went off every hour with another pathetic voicemail from Bellamy.

Despite how much it cost her, buying A.L.I.E. was the right move. Raven and Clarke had learned more in the last three days than Clarke could have learned in months on her own.

Whatever their plan was took about ten years to craft, which explains why they switched from targeting Wells to Clarke so desperately. Monty and Jasper joined their operation a few years ago, although Raven was still digging up why. The four of them were working together, taking out individual names from the list.

When Clarke’s phone started ringing, she groaned. But for once, it wasn’t Bellamy.

“How is France?” Thelonious teased, and Clarke’s stomach dropped. _Of course_ , he knew exactly where she was. He always did.

“Lovely. You know how much I love the Louvre,” Clarke lied quickly, and she heard Thelonious chuckle.

“Don’t worry. Your mother has no idea where you are and who you’re meeting with,” he replied, and Clarke glanced back at the window, seeing Raven with that determined look on her face. “Did you really think I wasn’t going to put your meeting with Indra and now your meeting with Alie together?”

Clarke threw her head back. He thought she was going after Griffin Global. _That_ she could work with.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” she said calmly, hearing Thelonious shift in his seat.

“Of course not. And I didn’t call you to interrogate you.”

“Then, what is the purpose of this phone call?” Clarke snapped.

“I want Alie to find something for me,” he said, and Clarke’s stomach dropped. She caught Raven’s eye as she turned around, but waved her off so she didn’t get worried. “There are some photos from a few years ago that I’ve been looking for. Let’s just say I paid a lot of money to make them disappear, and I suddenly have use for them. I can text you the information.”

“And am I getting something in return for this?” Clarke asked, already having something in mind.

“Of course. Negotiating is what we do, Clarke.”

“There’s a building I want to purchase, but I don’t currently have the cash I need on hand,” she sighed, not realizing just how _high_ of a price Becca would demand.

“Care to enlighten me about what building you’re suddenly interested in?” he teased, and Clarke rolled her eyes.

“The building that Jascorp just moved into,” Clarke replied. Even with the A.L.I.E. program, Raven couldn’t hack into their feeds. Plus, they’re a tech company. It’s too dangerous to get cameras in there since Monty and Jasper would be able to spot them.

“Spying on your new boyfriend isn’t a great start to your relationship,” Thelonious warned, and Clarke rolled her eyes.

“Says the man who owns the Griffin Global building just so he can keep an eye on his wife,” Clarke spat, and Thelonious chuckled. After all, it was this that gave Clarke the idea. A lot of their planning must happen at the office… why else hire Bellamy to run Jascorp? He has no tech experience in his background.

“You know, it doesn’t hurt to keep an eye on the people closest to us. Consider it done,” he replied.

“In my name only, understood?” she demanded, and Thelonious started chuckling.

“Of course. And you’re not to tell anyone about the photos. Do we have a deal?”

 

“Clarke, have you been avoiding Bellamy’s calls? Because I saw him earlier today and he looks like a panicky mess,” Echo huffed over the speakerphone, and Clarke rolled her eyes.

“He should be,” Clarke muttered.

“We’re limiting Clarke’s phone activity as much as possible since Monty and Jasper have been tracking her closely,” Raven explained, leaning forward.

“And I don’t want to talk to him,” Clarke added in, propping her feet up on the table. She was still reeling from finding the photos of her mother and Marcus Kane from all those years ago, and couldn’t begin to imagine what Thelonious was planning to use them for. But it wasn’t her problem. Her mother dug her own grave. “Wait, why did you see Bellamy today?” Clarke asked.

“I swear I just ran into him,” Echo muttered, but Clarke wasn’t buying it. Echo doesn’t just _run into_ people. It’s always strategically planned. “So, I looked over the files you sent me. What you’re missing is that the Maya girl’s last name is Vie. Her mother died in Mt. Weather.”

Clarke raised an eyebrow at Raven, who immediately jotted that down. “So, Jasper got involved either because of his girlfriend or because of Monty,” Raven put it together, and Clarke closed her eyes. She had hardly slept this week. There were too many things going through her mind as she dissected every second she had spent with Bellamy since meeting him. She knew it was all a lie… but there was something so unbelievable about that fact. She just wanted to scream at him, to ask if _any_ of it was real…

“Going forward, we have a lot to work with. Each one of them has their own little distractions. Octavia has that secret boyfriend of hers. Marcus is too busy trying to keep up appearances, meaning it’ll be pretty easy to keep him occupied…”

“Shouldn’t you two want them to succeed? Why would you want them to be distracted?” Clarke huffed, before pinching the bridge of her nose.

“We don’t. But we need to know their blind spots just in case,” Raven murmured, and Clarke groaned. She just wanted to be done with this already. “Clarke, we don’t know what they’re planning yet. They could be doing what we’re doing. Or they could be planning on executing the people responsible. We still don’t know who killed Tsing. It could have been them.”

Clarke swallowed, looking down at her hands. No, Bellamy was with her that entire night. Octavia was with Lincoln. Marcus was still in Tondc. And it’s not like Jasper or Monty had the stomach to kill a man.

“The trickier person to get around is Bellamy, of course,” Echo explained, and Clarke rolled her eyes. “He seems to be the brains of the operation.”

“Then, they’re fucked,” Clarke muttered, and Raven snorted.

“Clarke.”

“What? He only managed to trick me for a few weeks. If he is really running things, they’re fucked,” Clarke snapped.

“Yeah well… Bellamy had no way of knowing exactly _what_ you are, now did he?” Echo teased, and Clarke rolled her eyes.

“You mean, he had no idea that Clarke knows shady people like him or that Clarke knew about the list?” Raven asked, and Clarke let out a sigh.

“Yeah, and he has no idea that Clarke can put a bullet through his skull and knows more about Mt. Weather than most of us,” Echo replied, and Clarke clenched her jaw. “Meanwhile, we now know everything about him. Clarke’s working on getting surveillance of his office. And he still thinks of her as his pretty blonde girlfriend that is unknowingly helping him take down her family.”

“Echo.”

“What? I’ve said it once and I’ll say it again: let him think he’s succeeding,” Echo snapped, and Clarke groaned loudly.

“When I get back to Arkadia, I’m dumping him, and I’m gonna convince Wells to leave with me until this shitstorm is over. Otherwise, we’re both going to get hurt when you two and Bellamy’s crew are done,” Clarke snapped.

“Haven’t you two already gotten hurt?” Raven asked, and Clarke smacked her arm. “What? I mean, the damage is already kind of done. Echo and I will make sure that none of the criminal charges fall on you two. What’s the harm in you staying and playing along? It’d be a lot easier for us to keep tabs on what they’re doing if you did.”

“I’m not just going to keep being his fake girlfriend when he leaks my private therapy sessions online and tracks my movements. That’s fucked up,” Clarke snapped.

“Come on. Isn’t there a vindictive part of you that wants to use him like he’s using you?” Echo teased, and Clarke clenched her jaw. No, she didn’t. She knew why Bellamy was doing this. She was furious that she was who he was using, but she understood. And she wasn’t the kind of person who could just use someone like that. “Or did his little sob story get to you?”

“Shut the fuck up, Echo,” Clarke growled, and Raven narrowed her eyes at her.

“Is that what this is?” Raven asked, and Clarke pushed herself off the couch and started making her way back to her room. “Clarke,” Raven snapped, and she was carrying the phone with her as she approached Clarke.

“Stop,” Clarke warned.

“You feel bad that because of what your family did he got passed around from foster home to foster home, right?” Echo said over the speaker, and Clarke threw her head back. “I bet reading his juvie records messed with you. Yeah, he was in an abusive home. Yeah, his life fucking sucked because of your family. But that wasn’t your doing. What he did to you was fucked up. And you can do the same thing back to him. He deserves it.”

“I said I’m out,” Clarke growled, before stepping into her bedroom and slamming the door shut.

 

“Hey, Clarke. It’s Bellamy again. I’m sorry I’m filling up your inbox with these voicemails, but I haven’t heard from you and am getting worried. Please, call me back. I miss you,” Bellamy said before hanging up, and Clarke’s finger hovered over the delete button.

“If you won’t delete it, I will,” Raven huffed sleepily, and Clarke glanced over at her. Raven had stretched herself out quite comfortably in her window seat.

Clarke deleted it, before tucking her phone back into her pocket. “Happy?” Clarke said, with a raised eyebrow, and Raven rolled her eyes.

“You could just talk to him,” Raven suggested, and Clarke waved to the flight attendant, signaling for another drink. She only had another hour before she landed, and there was no way in hell she was suffering through Lorelei Tsing’s memorial sober.

“I don’t have all the facts and he’ll probably just lie to me,” Clarke groaned. After all, Bellamy and Marcus had clearly been planning whatever this was for years. He wouldn’t jeopardize the plan for Clarke. He had no way of trusting her. And she had no way of trusting him.

She shot the flight attendant a thankful look, before taking a drink. She could feel Raven’s eyes on her, but Clarke wasn’t in the mood to get into the same argument all over again. Raven had her reasons for wanting to know what Bellamy and Marcus were up to. And Clarke promised Marcus years ago that she would stay out of it, so that’s what she was going to do. She’d finish up her business in Arkadia, end things quickly with Bellamy, and get the hell out of there, letting Marcus deal with Thelonious the way he sees fit.

It was what was best for everyone, she decided. Clarke was just a foot in the door for Bellamy and Octavia, and she _shouldn’t_ take it personally.

She had played that first day over and over in her head, remembering how Octavia seemed determined to get Wells’ attention… so it wasn’t even like Clarke was originally targeted. She was a last-ditch effort to salvage their original plan, apparently. It wasn’t personal. She was just there and too trusting. And now that the Blakes were well-known figures in Arkadia, Bellamy didn’t _need_ her anymore.

“You gonna slow down?” Raven asked, and Clarke glanced down at her glass, realizing it was empty.

“Would you?” Clarke replied.

“If I was falling for someone who was just using me, probably not,” Raven retorted.

“I’m not falling for Bellamy,” Clarke snapped, and Raven’s eyebrows raised. “I liked him, but he’s been playing me since the first time I spoke to him. Whatever it was I liked about him is probably also a lie,” Clarke continued, but Raven wasn’t buying it. But Clarke meant it. She was just happy she caught on before things got serious.

“I’ve read his file too, Clarke. I know you understand why he’s doing this,” Raven whispered, and Clarke threw her head back. Bellamy’s story was one of the most heartbreaking ones Clarke had encountered, and she had spent the last few years hearing hundreds of the Mt. Weather stories. Bellamy was the one who found Aurora, and he was so young when it all happened. Then, there were all his foster care nightmares. Clarke’s family _ruined_ his life.

She didn’t blame him for what he was trying to do. She didn’t blame him for targeting her, for using her. But that didn’t mean she trusted him.

 

“Will you at least tell me where you went?” Wells asked, and Clarke leaned her head on his shoulder.

“Nowhere interesting,” she slurred, and Wells groaned. It probably wasn’t the smartest decision to get drunk before a memorial service, but Clarke didn’t give a shit. There was maybe one person here that she actually cared about, and his name was Wells Jaha. Plus, she was supposed to be convincing her mother she was off on a bender… so showing up drunk was a nice touch.

“I’ll be right back,” Wells mumbled, and Clarke sat up, and propped her feet up in his chair. Luckily, no one had bothered to come talk to her… which she was grateful for. She glanced around, noticing more of the same faces she always saw. Dante and Cage Wallace looked awfully smug. God, she hoped Bellamy would do something awful to Dante. He didn’t ruin Pike’s life enough, honestly. Clarke had expected a bit more from someone trained by Marcus Kane.

“Hey, Clarke,” she heard a familiar voice say, and Clarke’s stomach dropped. She lowered her sunglasses as she looked up at Bellamy Blake.

“What are you doing here?” she snapped without thinking. All the anger she felt from the last time she saw him flooding back.

“I’m here to pay my respects to Dr. Tsing, just like you,” he said as he sat down beside her, and Clarke had to fight the urge to laugh. After all, Tsing wouldn’t be dead if it weren’t for Bellamy and Octavia. “I’m happy to see you again, by the way,” he snapped, and Clarke’s jaw clenched. He had no right to act passive aggressive about her disappearing act. It wasn’t like anything here was real anyway. He wasn’t happy to see her for any reason except that it worked for his fucking plan.

“Sure,” Clarke muttered, facing forward. Then, she heard Wells’ footsteps as he came up to sit beside her.

“Clarke, have you told Bellamy where you’ve been for the past week?”

“Why is everyone obsessed with what I’ve been up to?” she snapped, tilting her head up to glare at Wells, but she lost her balance. She could feel Bellamy’s hand on her back, propping her up. And now Clarke wished she had hidden up in her room for this damn thing… she wouldn’t have had to be here, to be with _him_.

“We’re worried about you,” Wells grumbled, grabbing ahold of Clarke’s hand. She swallowed, feeling a brief flash of guilt over Wells. He was an innocent in all of this. He didn’t deserve Clarke lashing out or throwing temper tantrums. He had no idea what his father did all those years ago, and he didn’t know that Clarke’s alleged boyfriend was using her.

“Let’s just get this over with,” Clarke sighed.

“You could at least pretend to be sad,” Wells whispered, and Clarke’s lips twitched. She didn’t feel sad at all. Not over Lorelei Tsing, the woman who fucked up Clarke’s head to the point that Clarke couldn’t even tell what was real and what wasn’t. If it weren’t for Tsing, Clarke would have been okay when Marcus found her all those years ago… and she would be the person working with him, instead of the one they were using.

“Dr. Tsing taught me a long time ago that we can’t dwell on the dead. That it’s not healthy,” Clarke snapped, thinking back to all those sessions where Tsing snapped at Clarke over the fact that Clarke couldn’t move on from her dad’s death. Clarke was only seven, and knew the truth… but no one would believe her, or so she thought. Actually, everyone knew she was telling the truth. Her mother just paid Tsing heavily to convince Clarke that she was making it all up.

“Clarke.”

“What? I’m just honoring her by not shedding a fucking tear,” Clarke slurred, and Wells pulled his hand from her clasp to cover his face with both his hands. Then, she felt Bellamy’s arm stretch across her shoulders, before pulling her closer to him. Clarke’s chest grew tighter as she glanced up at him.

“Let’s just get through the service,” Bellamy whispered before kissing her forehead, and suddenly Clarke felt like she couldn’t breathe. _This wasn’t real_ , she reminded herself. Nothing Bellamy said or did with her was real. None of this was _real_. It didn’t matter how comfortable or real it felt, it _wasn’t real_.

 

When Clarke’s eyes opened, it was a little too bright in her room. She clenched them shut again, trying to remember how she even got into her bed. She remembered sitting at the memorial… but everything after it was blurry.

Then, she realized she heard breathing. Her eyes fluttered open again, and she realized her head was resting on Bellamy’s chest.

She jerked away, rolling over to the other side of her bed to grab the water and aspirin that had been laid out for her.

“How are you feeling?” he asked, and Clarke realized she wasn’t drunk anymore. There was nothing left to dull the ache she felt whenever she heard his voice.

“I’m fine,” she snapped, climbing out of the bed. She needed to get away from him. Clarke knew none of this was real, that Bellamy was just playing her… he was only here because that’s what a good boyfriend would do. He was playing the part. He didn’t actually care about Clarke, how could he? Her family ruined his life.

“Clarke, what’s going on with you?” Bellamy asked, as Clarke made her way to her closet.

“Nothing, I just got a little drunk. It was a long plane ride,” she mumbled, tugging a shirt and pants from her closet.

“Why didn’t you answer any of my calls?”

She could hear the slightest bit of genuine concern in his voice, and for a moment, she relaxed. But she didn’t turn around to look at him. She couldn’t. She didn’t trust herself to not get sucked back in.

For the past week, Clarke had been going back and forth, trying to decide if there was any part of Bellamy that actually cared for Clarke… if any of it could have been real. Her mind knew better. But her heart? That was a different story.

“I don’t know,” she mumbled.

“Clarke, I missed you,” he whispered, and her chest tightened back up again. Of course, he was lying to her. He didn’t miss her. He needed his target back, his mark.

“You know, I just remembered I have to make a few phone calls about an event coming up. I’ll call you tomorrow,” she lied quickly, practically sprinting into her bathroom to change. She kept her ear pressed to the door, listening to him slowly make his way out of her bedroom.

Then, she let out a sob she had been holding in for about twenty-four hours, and fell to her bathroom floor. _It wasn’t real_ , she reminded herself. Bellamy was just using her. He didn’t miss her. He didn’t worry about her. He just needed to keep her close.

 

The second she saw Emerson… Clarke knew she had seen him before. Then, Raven did some digging and found that he was the first person on the scene when her father died in that car crash.

 _There are no coincidences_.

She threw her head back, sucking in a deep breath. But her entire body felt shaky. Any doubt she had about Thelonious being responsible for what happened to Jake Griffin went out the window. He did it and hired the same man to kill Lorelei Tsing. It explained why he paid off Shumway all those years ago, and why he was keeping tabs on the current investigation.

She was on the verge of tears in the library when her phone started ringing. It was Bellamy.

“Hey,” Clarke answered, leaning back in her chair.

“Hey, Clarke,” Bellamy replied, and Clarke took a deep breath. She had planned her breakup speech long before she got back in the country. Raven had helped her. If Bellamy really only needed her as a foot in the door, it should go over easily. Then, Clarke could get the hell out of his horrible city and take her time getting herself back together. She’d never have to see Bellamy Blake again, would never have to worry about something like this happening to her again.

“What’s up?” she asked casually. She could do this. Bellamy would understand. Maybe it wouldn’t go along with his plan, but he could adapt. He didn’t need her. He had been through hell himself. There’s no way if he were even a marginally good person that he would try to coerce Clarke to stay when she wanted to go. She had to believe that.

“I was wondering if you wanted to come over. I haven’t seen you much lately and I miss you,” he said, and Clarke let out a sigh. It was bad enough that they had already slept together… that he was willing to go _that far_ to keep this whole charade up.

“Bellamy, I’m not sure that’s a great idea,” she replied carefully, making sure to keep her growing irritation in check. Bellamy couldn’t know that she figured out what he was doing. Clarke had no idea how he would react to that information, and it wasn’t like she should have anything to do with this.

“Clarke,” he started.

“Look,” she cut him off before he said anything to lessen her resolve. “We kind of got thrown into this when my step-father sprung his PR plan on us, and things are just moving so fast…” she sighed, hoping he would get the damn point. It was over. She was done. She had no interest in being in a fake relationship. She knew it was better for her to not get involved in this plan, that she didn’t have the heart to dish out the revenge that Thelonious and her mother had coming to them. She was too close to this whole thing. She needed to get out.

“I was fine with that. And before you took off, you were too,” he retorted, and Clarke swallowed. He wasn’t making this easy on her.

“I don’t know, Bellamy,” she muttered, clenching her eyes shut. He didn’t need her anymore. He was close with Wells, knew everyone on the list well enough that he could continue his plan.

And if there was a part of him, maybe a small part of him, that cared about Clarke, he would let her get out of this. Bellamy knew Clarke was innocent, that she was only six when Mt. Weather happened. She wasn’t the target.

She read through his file over and over again, seeing evidence that he had a conscience everywhere. He had to know that this plan would hurt Clarke, and would try to minimize whatever damage came her way. If she was pushing him away, he would let her go. That, she was pretty certain about.

“Please, stop pulling away from me,” he pleaded, and Clarke’s brows furrowed as she pressed the phone closer to her ear. “Look, I know we haven’t known each other that long, but I can’t stop thinking about you,” he said, and for a moment, Clarke forgot he was lying. But there was something that scared her more: _she wanted to believe him_. “I’m falling for you, Clarke.”

She sat up straighter, caught off guard by that particular lie. No, this couldn’t be happening. Bellamy may be a liar, but Clarke _knew_ him. He wouldn’t do this. He wouldn’t be willing to lead Clarke on like this just to get closer to her family. He wasn’t one of those people. She was certain about that, at least.

“What?” she asked, hoping he’d take it back. Please, take it back. Don’t do this to her.

“I love you,” Bellamy said with so much certainty in his voice, and Clarke’s thoughts were screaming that _none of this is real_. She worried her bottom lip, before standing up. She paced towards the bookcases, trying to get her thoughts to slow down enough for her to figure out how to move forward.

She should say she doesn’t feel the same way and hang up. She could do that and still get out of this. But she wasn’t so sure she wanted to run now.

No, Bellamy just told her the worst lie he possibly could in a desperate attempt to keep her. If she was just a mark, he wouldn’t have gone to the effort. _He was targeting her_.

Clarke didn’t know Bellamy. Not even a little bit. Any judgement she made about his character was wrong, horribly wrong. He didn’t care if she got hurt. There wasn’t even a small part of him that cared about her. If there was, he wouldn’t have said the one thing that would devastate her.

“I love you too,” she lied quietly, praying that she was believable.

Clarke wasn’t going anywhere. She couldn’t trust Bellamy. If he was willing to do this, someone needed to keep an eye on him.

 

When she got to Echo’s apartment, she and Raven were sprawled out on her couch. The two of them were going over the A.L.I.E. program, planning their next move.

“How’d the fake boyfriend take it?” Echo mumbled.

“He said he loves me,” Clarke replied, which caught Echo’s attention.

“He did what?” Echo growled, crossing her arms. Raven didn’t bother to join in, keeping her eyes on the screen in front of her.

“Bellamy Blake lied and said he _loves_ me,” Clarke repeated, nearly gagging on the word “loves”.

“He needs something from you,” Echo realized, cocking her head to the side.

“What could he possibly need? He already has cameras in her fucking house,” Raven grumbled, and Clarke’s eyes widened.

“He what?” Clarke screamed, glaring at Echo, who let out a huff.

“We just found out ourselves,” Echo replied, but Clarke was grinding her teeth together. Bellamy was spying on her too. Sure, he probably just installed it to have surveillance on her mother and Thelonious, but there was no way in hell he wasn’t using it to spy on Clarke too. Fuck, he probably was watching her during that damn phone call.

“I want them out of my house,” she growled, and Echo furrowed her brows.

“No, he needs them to know what your parents are up to,” Echo said, and Clarke’s jaw clicked. “Clarke, he needs to keep surveillance if he’s going to stay on schedule. You want him gone, right? This is how he leaves.”

Clarke started pacing back and forth, thinking this over. Echo was right, of course. Bellamy wouldn’t leave until this whole horror show played itself out… which meant if Clarke wanted him gone, she needed to help speed it all up. That meant leaving up the cameras, letting him use her…

“I want to know everything he knows,” Clarke decided, and Raven’s lips twitched into a smile.

“I’ll need access to one of their phones. Maybe I could get one of the Jascorp boy’s phones,” Raven replied, and Clarke nodded along.

“Clarke, what are you doing?” Echo asked, and Clarke bit her lip. “You’ve told me over and over you don’t want anything to do with this. You could literally just walk away.”

Clarke swallowed, looking down at the ground. She should just walk away. But she didn’t trust Bellamy. She didn’t know what he was planning. For all she knew, more people could get hurt.

“You’re taking this personally, aren’t you?” Echo asked, and Clarke shot her a glare.

“Of course not,” Clarke spat. Echo stood up, slowly walking over with a concerned look on her face.

“You let him in, and you don’t let people in,” Echo whispered cautiously.

“Stop.”

“That’s what it is, isn’t it? You finally trusted someone again and he—”

“Stop!” Clarke snapped, and Echo swallowed. Echo didn’t sit back down or move away from Clarke, but just stood there patiently, waiting for Clarke to say something. “I don’t. It’s not that… Look, what he’s doing to me is fucked up. I get why he’s doing it, but that doesn’t mean I don’t want to punch him any less,” Clarke growled, and Echo’s lips twisted up in a smile.

“Just tell me what you want from me,” Echo smirked, and Clarke took a deep breath.

“I want cameras in his house. His office isn’t going to be enough. I want to know what he’s doing at all times. I want to figure out who he is targeting from the list,” Clarke listed off, and Echo’s grin only grew as she continued.

“Next up is Dante Wallace,” Echo explained, and Clarke nodded along. “And what are you going to do with your loving boyfriend?”

“Use him like he’s using me,” Clarke snapped. Bellamy Blake was going to regret fucking with Clarke Griffin.

 

“You’re up to something,” Wells accused, and Clarke lowered her sunglasses to glare at him.

“What could I be up to?” Clarke asked, and Bellamy came back to sit with them, handing Clarke her glass of champagne. “Thanks, Bell,” she grinned, taking it from his hand, before he leaned down to kiss her cheek. She swallowed, before turning back to look at Wells. She could feel Bellamy snake his arm around her waist, and she was so grateful she had dark sunglasses on to hide the annoyed look on her face.

“Something is up here,” Wells smirked. “You’re smiling more than normal. What happened to my angsty sister who would hole up in her room for days with her sketchbook?”

“She became happy,” Clarke replied, before grinning back at Bellamy… who for just a moment had a nervous look on his face, before fixing a smile back on his face. She loved those moments where his lips twitched or where he struggled to compose himself… at least it wasn’t _easy_ for him. And she wasn’t going to let this be easy for him. If he was going to keep hurting her, she was going to make sure he felt a pang of guilt every time he said he loved her. She hoped he felt sick about what he was doing.

Then, out of the corner of her eye, she saw Roan walking out of the house with a serious expression on his face. He just got out of Thelonious’ office… she was fairly certain. Everyone else was in the backyard for the party. Then, Roan’s eyes locked with hers, before gesturing with his head for her to come over.

“I’ll be right back,” Clarke said sweetly, patting Bellamy on the leg, before standing up. She walked leisurely across the law toward Roan, who was getting annoyed with how long she was taking. “What can I do for you?” Clarke asked, and Roan’s head cocked to the side as he gave her a once over. Then, he glanced behind her with a concerned look on her face. Clarke turned to see Wells and Bellamy right where she left them, although Bellamy had his eyes locked on her and Roan.

“Do you want me to look into your boyfriend? It couldn’t hurt,” Roan offered, but Clarke waved him off.

“What do you really want?”

“Mr. Jaha wants to know if you have what he asked for,” Roan said, and Clarke looked across the lawn to see her mother distracted with Diana Sydney and some of her committee friends. Right, this would be the perfect time for her and Thelonious to meet without arousing her suspicion.

“Does he have what I asked for?” Clarke replied, cocking her head to the side.

“It will be finalized in the morning,” Roan whispered, and Clarke turned around and started walking back to Wells and Bellamy. “Clarke,” he shouted, and Clarke turned back around innocently. “Aren’t you going to meet with him?” he asked with gritted teeth.

“Maybe later,” Clarke smirked, before turning back around and taking her seat next to Bellamy.

“What was that about?” Bellamy asked, as Clarke took her drink back from him.

“Wouldn’t you like to know…” she muttered into her drink.

 

Folder in hand, she walked into Jaha’s study… fully aware of the camera tucked away in between the clock her mother had given him on their five year anniversary and one of his first editions. Clarke had made a habit of figuring out where all the cameras in each room in the house, and had located at least one in each room.

“Sorry, she’s been hovering around me,” Clarke apologized, tossing the folder onto his desk. He picked it up immediately, smirking as he flipped through the photos… which were permanently burned in Clarke’s brain.

“Well, after your performance at the memorial, it’s to be expected,” he sighed, and Clarke got comfortable in the seat across from him. “For a moment, you even had me fooled.”

Yeah, her drunken escapades had been pretty effective in keeping both Wells and her mother from thinking she was up to anything except her normal acting out. “Well, we don’t exactly need Mom to know why I left the country.”

“Still, she really thought you were having a nervous breakdown there. She lost a lot of sleep over it.”

 _Good_ , is what Clarke wanted to scream. She and Thelonious had driven her to many a nervous breakdown before. She hoped they both felt horrible about it. Just like she hoped Bellamy felt like shit for hurting her.

“You don’t seem too concerned,” Clarke observed.

“Eh, let her suffer a little bit. And give Alie my thanks for tracking this down for me,” he shrugged.

“She thinks it was for me,” she lied. “I thought that was best considering your complicated relationship.”

“Is this the only copy?”

“There’s one other,” Clarke smirked, and Thelonious narrowed his eyes at her. “I’m holding on to it, just in case.”

“You’re learning. And I’m assuming Alie helped you with whatever it was you needed.”

Clarke swallowed, thinking carefully about how to respond. It wasn’t just Thelonious here. Bellamy, Monty, Jasper, Octavia, and Marcus were also likely watching. “She helped me back up a theory that I confirmed when I got back,” she said vaguely, not even sure that was an answer. “Now, as for what you promised me,” Clarke reminded him.

“Of course. A deal is a deal, Clarke,” he replied, sliding a piece of paper over to her. She glanced over at the desk, seeing that a stack of books would block the paper from view of the camera. Carefully, she picked it up, making sure to angle it so Bellamy couldn’t see what it was. She only prayed that Thelonious was discreet about how he obtained the building.

And there was her name. She’d be able to get the video feeds in Bellamy’s office, along with Jasper and Monty’s. There was a weird sort of satisfaction of knowing that she would get to watch them like they were watching her… except they didn’t know she _knew_.

Before she left, she remembered seeing Emerson… and she took another look at Thelonious. _He_ was who killed Tsing, just like he killed her father. “Before I go, I do have a question for you,” Clarke snapped.

“I do hope this isn’t another one of your conspiracy theories. That stopped being cute years ago,” he muttered, and Clarke’s stomach dropped. Of course, he’d throw the fact that Clarke was “crazy” back at her, trying to manipulate her out of knowing what she _knew_. She stood up, bracing her hands on the desk as she stared him down.

“It’s about the guy they think killed Dr. Tsing, Carl Emerson,” Clarke spat, and that caught his attention. She needed to say this, not just because she wanted him to be a little afraid of her. Marcus and Bellamy needed to know about Emerson and Thelonious too. Clarke couldn’t do a damn thing about them, but they could. “I recognized him.”

“Let’s not go around telling people that,” he snapped quickly, and Clarke’s jaw clenched. “It might be another one of those things you made up as a kid.”

“Right,” she replied, narrowing her eyes at him. “Sometimes I forget that I was crazy.” She turned around in a huff. When she got to the door, she turned back to look at him. “I just wonder how long it’ll take them to make the connection that Carl Emerson was the first responder on the day of my dad’s car crash. What a wild coincidence,” she growled, opening the door.

“Clarke,” he snapped, and she caught the panic in his eyes. He knew that she knew now, and there was no way in hell he could sleep easy with that knowledge.

“Pleasure doing business with you,” she replied sweetly, before slamming the door behind her.


	6. Distraction

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, for those of you remember what comes next in Double Infinity, you should be prepped for the twist at the end of this chapter. The next chapter is gonna be real dark for obvious reasons. So, I apologize in advance.
> 
> Anyway, thanks for sticking with this story and thanks for all the comments. Love you guys!

Clarke was trying her best to pay attention to Cage… but it was hard to take a word he said seriously when he was clearly just campaigning for his father. Instead, Clarke’s eye drifted across the room where Bellamy and Octavia seemed to be deep in conversation.

“That’s a really interesting point,” Clarke murmured to trick Cage into thinking she was still listening.

Clarke was learning that Bellamy was pretty skilled at masking what he’s actually feeling… but that he got sloppy when he didn’t feel like anyone was watching. From what she could tell, her little lie last week had let him think that he no longer needed to keep his guard up around her.

Just when Cage finally name dropped his father, Clarke caught a small smile on Bellamy’s face… the kind that made her nervous.

“What do you think they’re talking about?” Echo whispered, and Clarke took a sip of her drink. Unfortunately, Cage caught them both watching Bellamy and Octavia.

“Wait, are you still seeing Blake?” Cage huffed, giving Bellamy a once over.

“Of course,” Clarke replied with a smile, as she waved Bellamy and Octavia over.

“They’re madly in love,” Echo teased, and Clarke stepped on her foot.

“Interesting,” Cage muttered, and Clarke’s lips twitched.

“Hey,” Clarke grinned as soon as Bellamy was close enough, and he leaned down to kiss her cheek.

“We were just talking about you,” Echo smirked as she pulled away from her hug with Octavia.

“Only good things, I hope,” Bellamy replied, and Clarke caught the dark way Cage was sizing Bellamy up. It was no secret that the two of them didn’t get along… and she could understand it for the most part. But there was something very hostile about how Cage interacted with Bellamy, who for the most part had been the perfect gentleman… well, in appearance at least. Cage never acted like this around Finn. There was something _off_.

Clarke grabbed onto Bellamy’s hand, pulling him closer. She raised an eyebrow at Cage, very pointedly telling Cage to knock whatever this was off.

“I half expected Jasper and Monty to show up to this,” Cage finally said, working extra hard to seem civil, and Clarke gave him a small nod. She had enough to worry about… she didn’t need to add their pissing match to the list.

“Well, they’ve been hard at work with a new prototype, and they haven’t exactly been getting a lot of sleep lately. They’re probably too tired to come out,” Bellamy explained, and Clarke glanced over his shoulder to see Shumway walking into the room. Clarke turned her head to look at Echo, because he was early.

“Oh, Octavia,” Echo recovered, “I was going to introduce you to a friend of mine.” Echo grabbed her by the hand, tugging her away from the other three.

“Do I want to know?” Bellamy asked Clarke.

“She has this friend named Ilian in town and is introducing him to literally everyone hoping to find him a date,” Cage explained, and Clarke glanced back over at Shumway, who had finally spotted Cage. “Don’t worry. Octavia would never go for him.”

“I’m also pretty sure Ilian doesn’t want to be set up. But when Echo sets her mind to something…” Clarke explained, before glancing over her shoulder. Echo had Octavia facing away from this whole conversation… which means that Octavia wouldn’t notice Shumway walking in. Not that Clarke expected her or Bellamy to recognize the man or anything. But she wasn’t going to take any chances. Not until she was sure.

“Excuse me,” Cage mumbled, and Clarke turned back to see Cage start to walk in Shumway’s direction. Luckily, Shumway had turned away, so when Bellamy watched Cage take off, he didn’t see him either.

“Finally,” Clarke said, jerking Bellamy’s attention back in her direction.

“Eager to get me alone?” he teased as he put his arm around her waist. Clarke could see Cage nearly drag Shumway off toward the door… with an urgency that told Clarke her hunch was right. Shumway is in Wallace’s pocket too.

“Always,” Clarke smirked, and Bellamy kissed the top of her head. She started tugging him toward the side of the room before he noticed the suspicious looking conversation Cage and Shumway were having.

“Have I told you how beautiful you look tonight?” he whispered right into her ear, and Clarke’s eyes flickered up to his. It was kind of terrifying how good he was at this. He was too smooth, too charismatic. She should have _known_.

“Yes, but you could tell me again,” Clarke replied, as Bellamy’s thumb traced her cheek.

“You look beautiful,” he said seriously before tilting her head up to look at him. Then, he pressed a quick kiss to her lips. “Aren’t you going to tell me how beautiful I look?” he teased.

“Your ego doesn’t need the compliment,” she replied, as she straightened his tie. “You know exactly how you look.” Honestly, it wasn’t fair. She knows for a fact that he does absolutely nothing to his hair, and even when it’s messy it looks good. If she didn’t hate him so much, she’d be able to admit that him being in a suit really did it for her.

Then, out of the corner of her eye, she caught a glimpse of Shumway crossing the room… approaching Dax.

“And how do I look?” Bellamy asked, and she glanced back at him. She was fairly certain she had his attention… but she needed to make sure there wasn’t a chance in hell he caught whatever kind of exchange was happening just twenty yards from them. Not until she knew what was going on.

“As nice and handsome and downright sexy as you look,” Clarke whispered right into his ear, “you’d look even better inside of me.” Bellamy’s grip around her waist tightened as she heard a sharp intake of breath. It was almost too easy to distract Bellamy.

“Are you trying to kill me?” Bellamy growled into her ear, pulling her even tighter against him.

“Maybe,” she smirked, watching Shumway quickly exit the room. Her eyes flickered back to Dax… _why was he here tonight_?

“You’re not fair at all,” he whispered, and Clarke glanced back up at him. He spotted something, and she had a feeling it was Dax.

“Maybe you should do something about that,” Clarke teased before kissing his cheek. After a slight shake of his head, he turned back to look at her.

 

“He has someone on his payroll that is trying to find where it came from,” Jasper explained to Bellamy in his Jascorp office. She had been watching them for the better part of the afternoon, although they hadn’t revealed much of their plan. What she knew was that they were trying to get her parents to take Wallace out for them… which was actually kind of brilliant. She still had no idea what they sent to Thelonious to make it happen.

“They’re not as good at hacking as you two, right?” Bellamy huffed, not even looking up from his computer screen.

“They aren’t even that good,” Raven groaned from the other side of the couch, and Clarke smirked up at her.

“You’re better,” Clarke humored her, and Raven started grinning to herself as she got back to work.

“If they were, we’d all have been taken out by Jaha by now,” Monty muttered, and Clarke burst out laughing. She had to admit he had a point.

“And where are we on Echo?” Bellamy snapped, and Clarke raised an eyebrow. She knew that after how much Echo had been talking shit about him over the feeds in her house he’d probably have some kind of hostility toward her. Honestly, Echo was just trying to mess with Bellamy because of how pissed she is at him… but it could backfire if he actually started looking into her.

“Dude, she’s fine. She just hates you. You and Octavia need to calm down,” Jasper huffed, and Bellamy’s head jerked up with furrowed brows. It was so weird watching him at work… he was never this rattled or frustrated when around Clarke.

“I’m not saying she’s a legitimate threat, but she’s constantly in Clarke’s ear. I need to know what she’s up to in case she does anything to sabotage this,” he growled, and Raven started giggling at her laptop.

“Please tell me that after this I can beat the shit out of Bellamy,” Echo snapped as she came running back into the living room.

“After I get my turn, sure,” Clarke murmured, cocking her head to the side as she kept her eyes fixed on the screen. Clearly, just having his office surveillance isn’t going to be enough. They weren’t revealing enough from there and Raven still hadn’t gotten into their computers. “Raven, do you have the cameras ready for Bellamy’s house?” Clarke asked, and a smirk formed on Raven’s face.

“Yeah. You got a key for me?”

Clarke rolled her eyes. It wasn’t hard to steal one of his spare keys while he was sleeping. If anything, Clarke’s job had been relatively easy so far since Bellamy didn’t think of her as a threat. She’s was just some dumb heiress to him… an easy mark.

“Does tomorrow night work?” Clarke asked, already dialing Bellamy’s number, and Raven nodded.

She watched Bellamy’s reaction to her phone call carefully, seeing the little smile on his face as her name flashed across his phone’s screen. “Hey,” he answered, still grinning, and Clarke rolled her eyes.

“Hey, Bell. You’re still coming to the art auction tomorrow, right?” she double checked, as Bellamy leaned back in his chair.

“Of course. Wouldn’t miss it,” he smirked, before glancing over at Jasper and Monty, who seemed to be excited… which meant they had something planned for the event already. Clarke let out a sigh, glancing over at Raven who seemed to have come to the same realization. Oh well, at least they’ll be distracted as Raven bugs Bellamy’s house.

“Okay, good. I love you,” Clarke lied, and Bellamy immediately clenched his eyes shut.

“I love you too,” he whispered… but it looked almost painful for him to say it back. When he finally hung up, Clarke could feel Raven’s eyes boring into her.

“What?” Clarke huffed, and Raven closed her laptop.

“Look, he clearly feels guilty about lying to you,” Raven sighed, and Echo started groaning.

“Not guilty enough,” Clarke snapped, crossing her arms. It was a step too far and Clarke didn’t give a damn if he felt bad about it. He still did it.

“Reminder: we do not give a shit about Bellamy’s emotional well-being because he doesn’t give a damn about Clarke’s,” Echo jumped in, raising an eyebrow at Clarke. “Now, back to our plan… I think we should link Shumway into whatever it is that Bellamy is planning for Wallace. Then, we get him out of the way too.”

 

Bellamy was very distracted. She could see him zoning out of what Cage was saying… which probably had something to do with why Marcus Kane was having a very serious conversation with her mother.

“You’re free, right?” Clarke asked, and Bellamy started blinking a few times as he looked down at her in confusion.

“What?”

“For Senator Wallace’s campaign fundraiser at my house on Friday,” she explained as politely as she could, although she could just feel Cage seething beside her.

“I wouldn’t miss it,” he replied, and Clarke saw Echo signal her before walking over to where Monty was planted.

“Bell?” Clarke said, tugging his arm as Cage moved away from them.

“Sorry,” he mumbled, and Clarke knew as long as he was in this room, he wouldn’t be easily distracted by Clarke. From what she could tell, Monty, Octavia, and Marcus all had specific jobs tonight. Which meant Bellamy was supposed to be keeping watch.

She had to get him out of there before he saw what Echo was up to.

“You’re distracted,” she pouted, and Bellamy leaned forward to cup her face with his hand.

“I’m sorry,” he apologized.

“I know how you can make it up to me,” Clarke decided, before tugging him by the hand toward the exit.

“I thought you wanted to look at the paintings,” Bellamy teased as Clarke led him down the hallway. A few feet later, she found the storage closet she had in mind. It had been a few years since she had been in this specific gallery… but not much had changed in that time.

She opened the closet door, and pulled him inside.

“What has gotten into you?” he asked with a huge grin on his face, and Clarke closed the door behind her.

“You’ve just been so busy lately,” she pouted, pushing him back until he hit the wall. His eyes widened as Clarke leaned toward him. She started pressing quick kisses down his neck, and a soft moan escaped his lips. _Now_ , she had his undivided attention. His fingers tangled their way into her hair. “I just wanted you to myself,” she whispered against his throat before biting the skin gently.

His grip on her hair tightened as he pulled her head back. “Clarke Griffin, you are trouble,” he whispered huskily, before crashing his lips onto hers.

“You have no idea,” she teased breathlessly against his lips, letting her mind drift to the fact that as she spoke, Raven was breaking into his house and Echo was stealing Monty’s IP address… she _was_ trouble.

His grip on her tightened as Clarke’s hand slid down to rest over his cock, palming his growing erection through the fabric.

“Someone could come looking for us,” Bellamy warned as Clarke started undoing his pants.

“Then, let’s give them a show,” she teased, before Bellamy turned them around, pushing Clarke up against the wall now. His eyes were determined as he hiked up her dress, but turned dark as soon as he realized Clarke wasn’t wearing any panties.

His fingers started teasing her entrance as he leaned forward, pressing his entire body against hers. “How long have you been wanting to drag me back here, baby?” he whispered into her ear before dragging his lips down the skin of her neck.

“At least an hour,” she managed to get out before Bellamy plunged two fingers into her. A moan escaped her lips as she mentally cursed herself for enjoying this. It wasn’t like this was real for either of them, though. As much as she hated Bellamy, he was very good at this. She might as well enjoy it.

“Well, let’s not keep you waiting,” he teased as he pulled his fingers out of her. A whine escaped her as he started undoing his pants.

Once his cock was freed from his pants, he palmed her ass as he lifted her up. “Bell, please,” she begged, before he finally entered her. A moan slipped off her lips, before Bellamy covered her mouth with his large hand.

“Shh, someone might hear us,” he teased as he slowly thrust in and out of her. She let her fingers tangle themselves in his hair, tugging at his ends as he sucked along her jawline. “You look so beautiful like this, taking my cock so good,” he whispered as he pulled his hand off her lips.

“Fuck, Bell.”

He pressed his lips against hers right as his thumb crazed her clit. “I got you, Clarke,” he growled, before rubbing her clit slowly. “You’re gonna come so beautifully for me, baby,” he moaned before swallowing her moan in his mouth. Fuck, she hated how good this all felt. She hated how she couldn’t really enjoy what he was doing to her because she knew it was all a lie. She hated _him_.

“I love you,” she lied, and Bellamy captured her lips again… likely buying himself a moment to get his response ready. After the dozens of fake _I love you’s_ , he still struggled through each one. She could see how guilty he felt each time… which is probably why she kept telling him she loved him. She wanted to make him _hurt_. And maybe it was fucked up, but this whole thing was fucked up.

“I love you too,” he finally managed to say, before slamming his hips even harder into her. She closed her eyes, focusing on how his warm fingers felt on her clit, on how perfectly he filled her up. When she started to fall apart, Bellamy’s hand covered her lips again, muffling the loud moans escaping her lips. And when he started to fall apart, his face was buried into her neck as he growled into her skin.

By the time they got themselves back together and left the closet, she could see that Echo was successful. Monty was practically sprinting across the gallery with a murderous expression on his face. “Hey, Clarke. Mind if I steal him for a moment?” Monty asked through gritted teeth, and Clarke made her exit.

She spotted Echo across the room, very nonchalantly sipping champagne like nothing just happened. “Did you have to fuck Blake to keep him busy?’ Echo asked, raising an eyebrow as Clarke sat down beside her.

“You say that like it’s a chore,” Clarke rolled her eyes. Echo let out a huff, and Clarke took the glass from her hand to take a sip. “What? I hate him, but there is one very specific thing about him that I do like,” Clarke smirked.

She glanced across the room toward the exit, watching Monty bitch Bellamy out as Bellamy threw his head back in frustration.

“You don’t actually hate him, though,” Echo whispered, and Clarke whipped her head around to glare at her.

“He’s playing me. He leaked my private therapy sessions. He has cameras watching me. Trust me, I hate him,” Clarke growled, and Echo sighed.

“No, _I_ hate him. Your feelings are too complicated to be summed up by that word,” Echo explained, and Clarke pursed her lips. “Look, I know you. Whatever feelings you got before finding out what he was doing… they’re still kind of there. I just want you to be careful.”

“I know that none of it is real. I’m not falling for the same idiot twice,” Clarke reassured.

 

Whatever was going down with Wallace… it was happening tonight. Dante hadn’t shown his face yet… and Clarke had a feeling he was back in Thelonious’ office being eviscerated by her parents.

Meanwhile, Clarke was running damage control with the reporters who were freaking out. Then, she spotted Wallace and Thelonious step outside, she let out a sigh of relief. She nodded over to Echo, who immediately headed over to the reporter that used to work for Diana Sydney, ready to leak the information about Shumway as soon as the moment struck.

“Thank you all for that warm welcome,” Dante started, before glancing over at Thelonious. “Unfortunately, I have decided to withdraw my candidacy for president, and will not be seeking reelection for the Senate.” Clarke could feel Bellamy watching her carefully, so she made sure to look as shocked as she could… although this was just another day in the Griffin-Jaha household. She had seen this very speech done by numerous politicians that her family had buried over the years. “I’m not getting any younger, and I’ve decided to devote my time to my wonderful family. Thank you all,” he finished, before taking off toward the house. Clarke accidentally locked eyes with Cage, who had a furious expression on his face. Her stomach dropped, watching him take off after his father.

It took a while for the event to calm down, especially with all the reporters frantically trying to explain what just happened. Eventually, Bellamy made his way over to her.

“Are you okay?” was the first thing out of his mouth, and Clarke had to double take to make sure she heard him correctly.

“Yeah, I’m fine,” she snapped, probably a little too harshly. Then, she saw Cage storming back out of the house with a determined look on his face. She started to move toward him, but Bellamy gripped onto her waist, pulling her back. She glanced up at him, seeing him glaring right at Cage Wallace with a concerned look in his eyes. “Bellamy?”

It took him a few seconds to look back at her, but his grip didn’t loosen. “Sorry,” he mumbled. For a moment, she wondered if he was just being protective of her… not wanting her to get near Cage when he was clearly angry.

For half a second, she thought that maybe he cared about her enough to be protective… then, she remembered that he needed her for his plan. It was nothing more than that. _None of this was real_.

Reminding herself that none of it was real wasn’t getting any easier. In fact, it hurt worse every time.

 

“I’ve literally known him my own life,” Clarke sighed, pressing her phone between her ear and shoulder.

“You think you know someone,” he mumbled, and Clarke had to fight not to roll her eyes. For all she knew, he could be watching her on the feeds as she spoke.

“Well, to be honest, I’ve always known he was shady. Doesn’t mean I like to be proven right. Do you still want me to come over?”

“Of course. I haven’t seen you since the fundraiser,” he replied. “I miss you.”

Clarke felt her chest clench up at those words. She wasn’t used to Bellamy initiating the affection in their conversations anymore. He had been feeling too guilty to do it. He would only reciprocate if Clarke said those things first.

She shook her head before she let herself read into it any more. Everything he said to her was a lie, and she just needed to keep reminding herself of that.

“Okay, I’ll be right over,” she decided, before hanging up. She quickly grabbed some of her things and tossed them into her oversized purse.

She crept downstairs, careful not to wake up anyone in the house. Then, her phone started ringing. It was Cage Wallace.

She silenced the call quickly. She was told to cease all communication with everyone in that family. It was what their family did whenever they buried someone. She had to cut him off, even though she felt a little bit guilty about how his family’s life had been ruined. Mistress after mistress came out. The charges were stacking up against his father. Cage Wallace had a promising future in politics before this. Now, he would never have that. It wasn’t just Dante’s life that got ruined this week.

When she got into the garage, she noticed that the light was already on. She let out a huff as she fished out her keys. Wells probably forgot to turn the damn lights off.

“Clarke,” she heard a voice say, and her head jerked up. She knew that voice.

She only caught a glimpse of Cage before something covered her mouth and nose. She tried to jerk away, but he had his arms tightly wrapped around her, restraining her arms from fighting back.

When she tried to kick away, he slammed her against the wall, pushing his whole weight against her to keep her from moving. She held her breath, trying not breathe in whatever was on this rag… but she could already feel herself starting to feel drowsy.

“I’m really sorry it had to come to this,” Cage growled, and Clarke tried to scream… but she knew there was no point. She was far from where everyone else in the house was and her scream would be muffled.

Her eyes started to flutter shut. No one would know what happened to her. It would take too long for anyone to figure out she was missing, she realized. Her family would have thought she went off to see Bellamy, and wouldn’t expect to hear from her.

 _Wait_ , she remembered hazily… Bellamy was expecting her. He would know something was up when she didn’t answer the phone and never showed up. He had cameras in this house, maybe even in the garage. His boys were always tracking her phone… _Bellamy_ could help her.

She could feel her body give in as she melted into a calmer state. She would be okay. She had Echo and Raven… and Bellamy. One of them would find her.


	7. Dissonance

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As you probably guessed, this is going to be a dark chapter. There's gonna be some smut, some general confusion, Clarke attacking Jaha... so all in all, a good time. 
> 
> Thanks for all the love so far, guys. I love y'all!

She could taste blood. That was the first thing she realized as she woke up. When her eyes fluttered open, she realized she was lying on the floor… she wasn’t lying on the floor before, she was pretty sure.

She tried to move to push herself up, but was quickly reminded that her hands were tied behind her back. She turned her head, seeing what looked like blood on the cement wall behind her… _her blood_.

Clarke turned back to see Cage pacing in front of her, holding onto a phone in his hand. He glanced down at her coldly, before turning back around. She vaguely remembered getting thrown into that wall… _when she tried to escape_. She wasn’t going to make that mistake again.

“Hello to you too,” Cage said into the phone, and Clarke’s eyes widened. Cage turned back to look at her, raising an eyebrow in her direction. He smirked, before pressing a button on the phone.

“… and we will give you whatever you ask for,” Thelonious said, and Clarke’s stomach dropped. She must have been out much longer than she thought. They were already negotiating a ransom.

“I want the files you stole from Dante Wallace,” Cage huffed, and Clarke had no idea what he was talking about. There were a million things Cage could be asking for… but files? He should be asking for money and a way to disappear out of the country.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Thelonious replied in a cool tone that Clarke was all too familiar with… the same tone he used whenever Clarke brought up something related to Mt. Weather.

“I think you do,” Cage snapped, now crouching down next to Clarke. He leaned forward and brushed a hair out of her face, and Clarke shuddered at the touch. “I want the Mt. Weather files or else I kill Clarke,” he said calmly, looking right into Clarke’s eyes as he spoke.

The two of them waited in silence for Thelonious to agree… but he didn’t speak for at least thirty seconds.

“Surely, there is something else I can offer you,” he finally said, and the tears started to well in Clarke’s eyes.

“I’ll give you another chance in a few hours. I hope you change your answer, or else you’re going to listen to Clarke die,” Cage growled.

“Wait, ple—” Thelonious tried to say but then Cage hung up the phone.

 

After hours of whining, Cage finally gave in and removed the gag from Clarke’s mouth. By now, she was propped up against the wall. Her head was killing her, but she was terrified to ask Cage to do anything about it… especially with how creepily he was staring at her.

“You’ve hardly said a word to me,” he observed, cocking his head to the side. Clarke swallowed, remembering what Echo taught her about keeping her mouth shut. But Clarke was already fairly certain she was going to die here. It wasn’t like Raven, Echo, or Bellamy had a lot to go on. Cage used a voice disguiser when doing the phone calls, meaning no one had any clue that it was him who took her.

“What were in the Mt. Weather files?” Clarke asked, and Cage’s eyes widened.

“I don’t think you want to know, Griffin,” he spat.

“Well, it’s clearly valuable enough for you to kidnap me over them,” Clarke muttered, resting her head back against the wall.

“You know, don’t you?” he asked, and Clarke nodded slowly.

“What is in the file?” she whispered, closing her eyes gently. It was only a matter of time before Cage made the phone call and Thelonious refused. After all, Clarke wasn’t even his daughter. He had no problem brainwashing her and pushing her away for her entire life. Hell, his life would probably be a lot easier if she died. _Thelonious wasn’t going to save her_.

“Leverage. At least, enough to get the death penalty thrown off the table for my dad. It’d send your parents away for the rest of their lives, though,” he explained, and Clarke furrowed her brows. If Dante kept a file like that just in case he needed leverage… others would too. There were plenty of other people who probably lived in constant fear that one day her parents would turn on them. That meant that everyone on the list was a potential person who could turn on them.

Fuck, if only she had realized this sooner.

“Your parents are monsters, Clarke. They deserve it,” Cage said, and Clarke glanced over at him.

“I’m not disagreeing with you,” she snapped. “382 people died because of them,” she sighed, leaving out that Dante Wallace was just as responsible… she didn’t need to say anything to make Cage snap.

“It was way more than 382, Clarke,” he replied, and Clarke raised an eyebrow at him. “What? You know your father also died because of them.”

Clarke’s stomach dropped as Cage’s smirk grew. “Stop,” she warned.

“He was just the first of the clean up murders,” he spat. “Do you have any idea how many nosy witnesses conveniently died in the weeks following Mt. Weather? How many conspiracy theorists just disappeared with no explanation?”

“Please,” Clarke asked, closing her eyes. She didn’t want this to be the last thing she thought about before she died. Every privilege she had been given in her life came directly from Mt. Weather and the murders that followed. It was a guilt and pain that haunted her every damn day of her life… and all she wanted was a few seconds of peace.

“I counted. It’s closer to 500,” he kept going. “That’s thousands of people whose loved ones got murdered.” Then, Clarke heard him shuffle. She opened her eyes to see him move toward his phone. She could see his gun resting right beside the phone… just waiting for the moment that Thelonious refused to save Clarke. _This was how Clarke was going to die_.

She clenched her eyes shut, trying to get her mind off it. She immediately went to Wells, trying to conjure up some happy moment they had recently… but she couldn’t think of any. They were too dark, what with Wells unknowingly being used by Roan and the depression that followed. And every time she thought about Wells, she thought about how he had no idea what kind of monsters raised them.

Then, she thought about Echo and Raven… but all her memories with them were tied to Mt. Weather. And Clarke might be about to die for what happened at Mt. Weather, but she wasn’t going to let those memories haunt her in her last moments on earth. She just wanted to think of something happy.

“Have you reconsidered my terms?” Cage growled, and Clarke’s tears started to fall. This was it.

Her mind finally settled on Bellamy… or at least, the early days with Bellamy. Technically, she was happy with him, even if it was all a lie.

“I’m sorry to hear that,” Cage said, and Clarke’s stomach dropped. She was out of time. So, she clenched her eyes shut and thought about that weird restaurant he took her to in the historic district. She basically assaulted him with history questions and he managed to answer all of them correctly… and frequently going off on tangents.

She remembered that it was the first time she ever saw him in jeans. She remembered that he hardly touched his food because he was too busy talking about history to her, and she hardly touched hers because she was so busy giggling at how animated he got every time Clarke accused him of being a fake history nerd. Maybe none of it was real. But that didn’t really matter right now. Real or not, it was one of the few happy memories Clarke had.

A loud crash jerked Clarke’s eyes open as she saw a group of officers storm into the building. Within seconds, a gunshot rang out and Cage fell to the floor.

 

“Clarke,” Wells whispered, and Clarke tried to turn her head… but it hurt so badly. “Hey, be careful,” he said, and she could feel him grab ahold of her hand. She glanced up to see him standing beside her hospital bed. He looked like he was on the verge of tears, but he was smiling. “I’m really glad you’re okay,” he said, and Clarke squeezed his hand as tightly as she could.

“Me too,” she replied.

“Doctor says you have a concussion, but everything else is just scrapes and bruises. We think we’re going to be able to take you home tomorrow,” he explained, and Clarke flinched at the thought.

“I’m going home?” she asked before clenching her eyes shut. No, she couldn’t go back there. Thelonious quite literally left her to die. She wasn’t safe with those people.

“How is she doing?” she heard her mother ask, and Clarke whipped her head around before remembering her concussion, and cursed under her breath at the pain that ripped through her head.

Then, she saw both her mother and Thelonious rush over to her side. She gripped onto Wells’ hand tighter and tried to take a deep breath… but she suddenly felt like she couldn’t breathe.

“Clarke,” Wells said nervously, as he helped her sit up… but it wasn’t helping. She couldn’t fucking breathe. “Hey,” he whispered, taking both her hands now and she tried to focus on him… but she could feel her mother touching her shoulder, and Clarke flinched at the contact. “Tell me what’s wrong,” he said slowly.

“I can’t breathe,” she managed to get out, as she slid closer to the side of the bed that Wells was standing by.

“Clarke, sweetie, you’re okay now,” her mother said calmly, and she clenched her eyes shut. She wasn’t okay. She was never going to be okay. She and Thelonious were murderers. Her mother married a man who had no problem leaving Clarke to die if it meant he got away with Mt. Weather.

“Get them away from me,” Clarke whispered to Wells, whose eyes widened.

 

“Clarke,” she heard a voice whisper. Her eyes fluttered open to see Bellamy standing beside her hospital bed. She vaguely recalls the nurse telling her that her boyfriend had been waiting all night to see her. She could see how exhausted he seemed, and she offered him a small smile.

“Hey,” she sighed, and Bellamy pulled a chair up right beside her before sitting down. Bellamy leaned forward to push some hair out of her face. “You look like shit,” she blurted out, and Bellamy started chuckling. She grabbed onto his hand, and he let his thumb run across the back of her hand.

“You’re the one to talk,” he retorted, and Clarke accidentally snorted. Bellamy leaned forward and kissed her forehead, and Clarke closed her eyes… enjoying the feeling of his lips on her skin again. She knew this wasn’t real, of course… but she was too tired and hurt too much. She just wanted to enjoy a few moments of this.

“Sorry I scared you,” she murmured.

“Just please don’t disappear again,” he whispered as he continued to run his fingers through her hair. Fuck, it felt so nice. She could stay like this forever.

 _No_ , she remembered. This wasn’t real. This wasn’t forever.

“But I was planning on getting kidnapped again next week,” she joked, trying to lighten up the conversation to keep her concussed brain from letting her think about Bellamy as anything more than what he was: a man who was using her to take down her family. Maybe she let herself think he could be something more back when she thought she was going to die… but she never thought she’d even see him again. She had to be careful not to let herself get sucked in. She couldn’t trust him.

“Too soon, Clarke,” he replied.

“Fine, I won’t get kidnapped again,” she smirked. “But only because I love you,” she blurted out before she thought better of it. It was just a habit at this point since she threw those words at him as many times as she could just to make him feel guilty. Although based on how horrible he looked, he probably felt guilty enough for one day.

Then, she felt his lips on her forehead again, and a smile formed on her lips without her consent. But it felt too good. He was being so soft and sweet to her right now… and she found herself wishing this was real.

“I love you so much, Clarke,” he said, and she felt his hand cup her cheek.

“I know,” she said quickly, trying to move this conversation along. She didn’t need him to confess his fake feelings for her… she was just concussed enough to believe him. And what was worse was that she _wanted_ to believe him.

“No, you don’t know,” he snapped, and Clarke’s eyes jerked open at his tone. She studied his face closely… but she had never seen him look at her like this before. He looked like he was struggling to tell her something, but no words came out.

He broke eye contact with her, leaning back in his chair as he wiped away a few tears. Clarke swallowed as she gave him a once over. He really did look horrible. Wells had mentioned that Bellamy hadn’t been home in days. He was at the house with everyone else, likely waiting for updates. He had dark circles under his eyes like he hadn’t been sleeping.

 _He was actually scared Clarke was going to die_ , she realized. And she had no idea what to do with that information.

 

Echo never visited her at the hospital… but Raven did.

“Why hasn’t Echo been here to see me?” Clarke snapped, as Raven pulled her laptop out of her bag.

“She’s weird about hospitals apparently,” Raven muttered, and Clarke threw her head back. That didn’t make sense at all. “She’ll come see you later, anyway.”

“Okay,” Clarke sighed, and Raven started walking over toward her. Then, she gestured for Clarke to slide over. Clarke let out a groan, before making room for Raven to sit next to her on her bed. “Oh, and Wells told me that it was you who helped them find me. Thank you,” she remembered to say, but Raven waved her off.

“Not a big deal. I’m a genius, remember?” she smirked, as she opened up her laptop. “Besides, it was your boyfriend that figured out that Cage was who took you.”

“What? How?” Clarke asked, as Raven started pulling up something on her laptop.

“Wells said he noticed something about how you reacted to your kidnapper in the video that made him realize it was Cage,” she explained, and Clarke threw her head back. Before she could ask another question, Raven pulled up the feeds from Bellamy’s house. “There’s something I think you should see.”

“Raven, I’m not doing this right now. I have a concussion. You and Echo worry about what they’re up to, I’m going to take a fucking nap,” Clarke groaned.

“You need to see what happened when they figured out you were kidnapped,” Raven said, and Clarke’s stomach dropped. She turned to look at the screen as Raven moved back to a few nights ago.

“Raven, just tell me what happened,” Clarke pleaded, and Raven pressed her lips together, before glancing back at Clarke with a strange expression on her face.

“You need to see for yourself,” she muttered before pressing play.

There was Bellamy pacing by his front door. “I need you to track Clarke’s phone. She said she would be right over and she’s not here,” Bellamy explained quickly. For a few moments, he just stood there in paralyzed silence, waiting on whoever was on the other line to say something. Then, something flashed across his face and he ran over to the kitchen table to open up his laptop. He was frantically clicking and typing, and there was a growing panic in his eyes. “She’s not there,” he snapped.

After a few moments, his eyes widened, before he started typing again.

“Raven,” Clarke whispered, grabbing her hand. She kept her eyes on the screen, watching Bellamy’s hand grip the table as his eyes stayed glued to his screen. Then, she heard a quiet scream coming from his laptop that sounded a lot like her mother’s scream. Bellamy started hyperventilating.

“He’s watching your family’s reaction to the video of you that Cage sent,” Raven explained, and Clarke felt her chest tighten.

She could hear a muffled noise coming from Bellamy’s laptop, but couldn’t understand what was being said. Bellamy’s phone slipped from his grasp, but he didn’t move to get it. He didn’t move at all. He was frozen and hyperventilating as he stared at the screen in front of him. He was having a panic attack… something Clarke was all too familiar with.

“How long does this go on?” Clarke asked as Raven started fast-forwarding.

“About half an hour,” she explained before pressing play, as Marcus and Octavia came running in. She couldn’t hear what Marcus and Octavia were telling him over the sound of Jasper and Monty dragging in all sorts of computers and other equipment… but it was clear they were trying to talk Bellamy down. His hand was shaking in Octavia’s grasp.

“Look, there isn’t anything in the feeds that show us how she got kidnapped. Whoever it was dodged the cameras,” Jasper explained, and Bellamy’s eyes widened.

“We’re going to find Clarke,” Marcus said calmly as he rubbed Bellamy’s back.

“Bell, everything is going to be okay. We’re on this. Jaha will have the entire country looking for her. Clarke will be okay,” Octavia explained, and for the first time, Bellamy looked away from his computer to look at Octavia.

“You don’t know that,” he murmured, his voice cracking as he spoke. His eyes were welling up with tears as Marcus tried to pull him up off the chair.

“We need to get you into bed,” Marcus explained, and Bellamy nearly collapsed before Octavia rushed to his side.

“We can’t lose her,” Bellamy sobbed, and Clarke reached over to pause the video.

“I can’t watch anymore,” Clarke cried, throwing her head back. That wasn’t the Bellamy she was used to. He was so broken… a lot more like the Bellamy she saw visiting her at the hospital last night.

“Clarke,” Raven sighed as Clarke pushed away her tears… she wasn’t even sure when she started crying. But that was too much to take in all at once. “I think it became real for him,” she whispered, and Clarke turned to look at her, her eyes wide.

“No,” Clarke huffed as she slammed Raven’s laptop shut.

“Did you not just see that? And whenever I get into your house’s feeds, I’ll show you how he got worse and worse the longer you were gone. Apparently, he nearly lost it after he watched the video Cage sent,” Raven said, and Clarke was shaking her head. No, it wasn’t real. None of it was real.

“It’s not real,” Clarke whispered, closing her eyes. She had spent too much of her life trying to figure out what was real and what wasn’t… too many people had messed around with her head that Clarke could really only trust herself… which meant that she couldn’t let herself entertain the idea that this might be real for Bellamy now. She couldn’t afford to be wrong. Not about Bellamy.

 

Wells helped Clarke make her way into the living room She spotted Thelonious immediately, with a panicked look on his face. She forced herself to suck in a deep breath as he ran over to her and enveloped her in a tight hug. She flinched at the contact, shooting Wells a pleading look.

“We are just so happy to have you home,” Thelonious explained guiltily… and Clarke pushed him off her.

“Where is everyone?” she asked, looking around. None of the staff were there… it was just the family.

“Sweetie, we dismissed the staff for the week so you could have some privacy,” her mom explained as she rested her hand on her shoulder, and Clarke jumped.

Then, her eyes landed back on Thelonious who was watching her carefully. She started moving toward him, noticing how his eyes widened as she approached him. “What did you say to Cage when he called you to negotiate the ransom?” Clarke snapped.

“Clarke, you must have hit your head too hard,” he started, immediately going back to the whole “Clarke is crazy” theory to dismiss any goddamn thing she had to say. “He never wanted to negotiate a ransom. He kidnapped you because he was convinced that we were behind what happened to his father and wanted revenge,” he explained, and Clarke clenched her fist. She took a deep breath before turning around. Nothing good would come from her snapping right now. “We’ll get you a new therapist so you can stop being so confused about what happened,” Thelonious added in, before Clarke whipped around quickly and punched him right in the face.

Wells immediately grabbed Clarke, pulling her back… but she couldn’t help but smile at the pain on Thelonious’ face. “Clarke, breathe,” Wells whispered, but she wasn’t fucking done.

“You were on speakerphone when he called you,” Clarke shouted, as she tried to pull herself from Wells’ grasp. “I heard you! You refused to pay the ransom!” Then, Wells let go of her as her mother jumped away from Thelonious with a murderous look on her face.

“Is this true?” her mother growled. “We could afforded whatever his price was!”

“Clarke could have died!” Wells shouted as he brushed past Clarke to go after Thelonious.

“It wasn’t money!” he shouted, his eyes locking with Clarke’s… pleading for her not to tell them. But he dug his own grave.

“He wanted the evidence you guys stole from Dante Wallace’s house,” Clarke snapped. Her mother’s head whipped around quickly to look at her, her eyes panicked.

“Clarke, you don’t know—”

“That your husband was willing to let me die instead of handing over evidence that would implicate him in the Mt. Weather explosion?” Clarke said quickly.

“Dad,” Wells growled, and Thelonious grabbed onto Wells’ wrist and pulled him toward the backdoor. Clarke tried to make a clean exit toward the stairs, but her mother followed after her quickly.

“Clarke!” she shouted, but Clarke kept moving toward her room. “Clarke, let me explain.”

Her mother followed her into her room, which she should have expected.

“I don’t know what Cage told you,” her mother started, and Clarke rolled her eyes.

“Stop talking,” Clarke growled. “I almost died and you’re trying to defend him right now. Get the fuck out.”

Her mother’s brows furrowed as she stepped toward her. Clarke took a step backwards in reaction. “Clarke,” she whispered.

“Get away from me,” Clarke yelled.

After a few seconds, she cautiously backed out of her room, closing the door quietly behind her. Shakily, Clarke made her way to her bed. She quickly heaved into her comforter, hearing the muffled sounds of Thelonious and Wells shouting outside.

As soon as she got her sobbing under control, she remembered that Bellamy would be over any minute now. She reached into her nightstand to grab her Tsing file. There was something she needed to look for before Bellamy was hovering around her 24/7.

She flipped through the pages that detailed her interactions with police officers… looking for the one that shot Cage Wallace. Wells told her that his name was Shawn Gillmer, but it didn’t sound familiar to Clarke.

But as far as she knew, it should have been protocol to try and take Cage alive. Gillmer shot him quickly, not even trying to take him alive. It didn’t make sense to Clarke, especially since he didn’t even have the gun in his hand yet… he was still on the phone when he was shot.

“Hey, princess,” Bellamy said, and Clarke jumped, frantically getting the file back into her drawer before he saw it.

“I don’t know why you call me that,” Clarke huffed, before turning back to look at him as he set his bag down.

“Oh, when I first came to Arkadia, Roan jokingly referred to your parents as the king and queen.”

“Which makes me the princess?” she scoffed, and Bellamy started smirking.

“It suits you,” he teased, and Clarke tossed her pillow at him. “I see you’re feeling better.”

“Much,” Clarke whispered as she got comfortable. When she looked back up at him, he was gazing back at her too tenderly… it made her stomach flip.

He tugged off his shoes before climbing in next to her. With a sigh, she tucked herself into his side, and Bellamy pressed a slow kiss to her forehead.

“Is everything okay?” he asked as Clarke rested her head on his chest.

“As okay as they can be,” she mumbled, and Bellamy started running his fingers through her hair.

“I love you,” he whispered, and Clarke kept her eyes closed… she couldn’t look up at him right now. Her mind was too flooded with the video Raven showed her.

He kissed the top of her head as Clarke tried to jerk that memory out of her head. He just looked so _broken_ over her and it was haunting her. “Love you too,” Clarke murmured, praying that was the end of this. She wasn’t sure she could take another second of his affection… not when she had no idea what it really meant.

 

_She could practically feel Cage’s hand around her throat… just moments away from throwing her back into that cement wall._

_“Clarke,” someone shouted, but Clarke couldn’t fucking breathe. “Clarke please.”_

She jerked her eyes open, and she was back in her bedroom. “What?” she whispered, wiping the tears off her cheek. She turned to see Bellamy up against her side, his eyes wide with panic as he studied her face.

“You were having another nightmare,” he whispered, and Clarke tried to turn onto her other side. Bellamy pulled her back, wrapping his arms around her as he pulled her into his chest.

“I’m fine,” Clarke whispered, but he didn’t let go.

“You were screaming in your sleep,” he explained, and Clarke buried her face into his shirt.

“It was just a dream,” she murmured, but she could feel the tears start to pour.

“You’re safe, Clarke. I’m not going to let anything happen to you,” he murmured into her hair, and Clarke started sobbing into his shirt.

She wasn’t safe. She was never safe. Mt. Weather damned her for life. It was bad enough that her own mind put her in enough danger over the years, resulting in too many hospital stays… but there was a very real possibility that Clarke’s life would end because of another incident like the one with Cage. And she had always known that. It’s why she went to such great lengths to convince everyone she was in Polis. She was safer when no one could find her.

“I used to have nightmares like that a lot,” Bellamy whispered, tightening his grip around her as he started rocking her back and forth. She could only imagine the kind of nightmares Bellamy would have as a kid… especially since he was the one to find his mother’s body, according to his file. “It gets easier with time.”

“I know,” Clarke whispered. This wasn’t Clarke’s first time around with traumatic experiences, and Bellamy likely knew that.

 

Every night went like that. Clarke would wake up from a nightmare, and Bellamy would calm her down enough so she could go back to sleep. Sometimes he would just hold her. Sometimes he would talk to her. Sometimes he would pepper her face with kisses.

Then, there was the night Bellamy had a nightmare. He started saying her name over and over in his sleep, tossing and turning. She had to shake him to get him to wake up… and he immediately reached for her, trying to make sure she was still there. He calmed down as soon as he glanced over at her.

Clarke hadn’t realized how traumatic her abduction would have been for him. Well, she hadn’t considered it. But her mind kept drifting back to how he broke down the night she was taken, to how broken he seemed when he saw her at the hospital, to the way he wouldn’t let her out of his sight…

And now she understood. It truly was _real_ for him. She wasn’t sure when that happened or how it happened… but it happened. His love confessions were more frequent, more desperate… as if he were apologizing for before. And Clarke wasn’t sure how to feel about that.

There was no denying how _right_ it felt to be close to him. She loved feeling him warm against her back as he wrapped himself around her. She loved his soft kisses. She loved the stories he would tell her when he was trying to calm down. She loved the tender smiles he would have on his face when he thought she wasn’t looking.

 _But he played her_ , she reminded herself. But she also understood why he did it. She supported his cause… she was on the same side. _But he hurt her_.

She glanced over her shoulder, seeing his sleeping face pressed between her shoulder blades.

 _He didn’t want to hurt her, though_. She could see the guilt on his face every time he lied to her. She had seen him vent about his guilt to his friends in his office. Bellamy was a good person… who did horrible things for good reasons. Considering how many people in her life did horrible things for horrible reasons… she could probably forgive him.

Clarke closed her eyes again, shifting against Bellamy. Then, she felt his erection pressing against her ass.

She laid there for a few moments, trying to ignore it… but she couldn’t. “Bellamy,” she whispered.

“Yeah, Clarke?” he murmured, his voice sleepy as he buried his face into her neck. She could feel his breath against her skin… which combined with feeling his arousal pressed against her was having a troubling effect on Clarke.

“Oh, sorry, go back to sleep,” she mumbled as Bellamy pressed a sloppy kiss to her cheek.

“No, I’m awake,” he whispered, and Clarke rolled her eyes.

“Well, yeah. I can feel that much,” she teased.

“Fuck, I’m sorry,” Bellamy realized as he tried to pull away. She gripped onto his hand and pulled him back.

“No, stay,” she pleaded, glancing back at him. He furrowed his brows as he studied her face. “It feels nice,” she explained, and Bellamy eased back against her again. He let out a soft hum as his hand found her hip again.

She rocked her hips back slightly, feeling his erection again… and fuck, she wanted him. She was just sleepy enough to let herself want him. “Clarke,” he moaned into her skin.

“Please,” she whispered, and Bellamy pressed a wet kiss to her cheek as he rocked his hips forward. His grip on her hip tightened as he rocked into her. Clarke let out a soft hum as Bellamy’s lips started trailing down her neck.

The two of them had never really been like this before. It was always rushed as they tore off each other’s clothing on the way to Bellamy’s bedroom. It was never soft and gentle. This was new for Clarke… and she felt so peaceful right here with Bellamy.

His thumb was stroking her stomach under her shirt as he whispered sweet nothings against her neck in between kisses. She was rocking herself against him, humming at his every touch.

“I love you so much, Clarke,” he whispered as he kissed his way up to her jawline. Clarke swallowed before tilting her head back to look at him. He was beaming at her with so much tenderness… and she needed to believe he was telling her the truth.

She pulled away for a moment, turning around so that she could fully face him. She leaned forward, tempted to kiss him. His eyes were searching hers… and she swears they were full of love. “I love you too, Bell,” she whispered.

For a moment, Clarke couldn’t believe the words that just escaped her lips. But for the first time, _she meant them_.

Bellamy captured her lips with his, and Clarke cupped his face between her hands. He pulled her closer to him as his tongue dove into her mouth… and Clarke shuddered.

 _She loved him_. How did that happen? She had been careful. She had been playing him too. This wasn’t supposed to happen. She was supposed to hate him for what he did to her.

But she didn’t…

No, she craved his touch. She had missed feeling like this was true. She missed how soft she felt around him before she found out… and now she felt that way again.

He devoured her lips as he kept rocking his hips against her. She had missed the taste of his lips on hers, the way he would swallow her moans, the way that his touch consumed her.

“Bellamy,” she whispered breathlessly against his lips, and his eyes softened as he gazed back at her. “I need more.”

“I’m gonna take care of you, okay?” he whispered as his hand slid down her stomach. Slowly, he pushed her onto her back as his fingers ghosted her panties. She looked up at him as he slid his hand under the elastic, cupping her cunt in his warm hand. Slowly, he pressed a finger into her and a whimper escaped her lips. His eyes met hers again as he pressed a second finger into her. Her eyes fluttered shut as his fingers slowly thrusted in and out of her.

After a few more little thrusts, Bellamy pulled his hand out of her panties before tugging the comforter off her. He made quick work of pulling off her panties, before settling down between her legs.

She whimpered as he pressed a slow, wet kiss to her folds. He kept peppering chaste kisses around her pussy… and Clarke let her eyes flutter closed as she hummed in pleasure.

Then, she felt him lick up her slit before he spread her out. She had to grip onto his curls as soon as his mouth latched onto her clit. Her chest was rising and falling rapidly as Bellamy sucked her clit, and a few whimpers slipped off her lips.

Then, he replaced his fingers with his tongue, and Clarke couldn’t help but grind herself against his tongue. “Bellamy,” she moaned quietly, and his fingers started rubbing her clit.

She shuddered as he picked up the pace, and she tightened her grip on his hair. It just wasn’t enough… she was so close. Bellamy’s tongue fucked into her rapidly as her kept rubbing her clit… and it wasn’t long until Clarke was practically gushing against him.

She threw her head back, whimpering his name over and over as the pleasure washed over her.

Once her breathing evened out, she glanced back down at Bellamy, who hadn’t moved. He was pressing slow kisses to her clit as his hands slid up and down her thighs softly. He tilted his head up to look at her, his eyes so soft.

“I missed you so much,” he whispered, and warmth spread across Clarke’s chest.

“Come here,” she grinned, and Bellamy quickly climbed up her body, peppering kisses up her neck before crashing his lips into hers. “Bell,” she murmured, running her fingers through his curls. His lips formed a soft smile as he beamed back at her. “I want to feel you inside me,” she pleaded. She needed more. She needed _him_.

Bellamy tugged off his boxers quickly, and Clarke straddled his lap. She leaned forward, pressing her forehead against his as she slowly sunk onto his cock. And once he was fully seated inside her, a moan escaped Clarke’s lips. _This_ was what she needed.

Bellamy was keeping a tight grip on her, trying to keep her as close as possible. She let her hands cup his face as her thumb traced his jawline. He was grinning back at her with an almost boyish grin. She could feel herself blushing in response to the way he was _beaming_ at her, not that he could tell in the dark. And when he stared peppering her cheeks and forehead with soft little kisses, Clarke was fairly certain she was gone.

“I love you,” she murmured, and Bellamy’s eyes fluttered shut. The sweet little grin never left his lips… he looked so happy, and that made Clarke feel warm all over.

 _He could always look this happy_ , she realized. And she could always be this happy. _They could find a way to be happy like this forever_.

And maybe he was thinking the same thing. It certainly felt like it when his eyes opened again. He leaned up and pressed a searing kiss to her lips as he tightened his hold on her. She moaned into his mouth as he met her hips with his again.

She kept her forehead pressed against hers as she came undone. She whimpered into his mouth, feeling him start to fall apart too.

And then they just held each other like that. She was running her fingers through his curls as he panted into her neck. “I love you so much,” he murmured, and Clarke kissed his cheek.

There was a lot Clarke was unsure about, especially where Bellamy was concerned.

 _But this was real_.


	8. Remembrance

Clarke narrowed her eyes up at Marcus Kane, her entire body tense with anger. Maybe it wasn’t fair how angry she was with him when there were people in this very house who had committed far greater sins against her. But he didn’t help her. And he let Bellamy and Octavia use her, knowing how much Clarke had been manipulated in the past. “Why did you really come back here?” Clarke growled, eyeing him carefully.

She figured it was fair to at least give him the opportunity to come clean, to tell her what’s going on. And for a moment, he looked like he wanted to tell her.

“I could ask you the same thing, Clarke,” he replied, and she knew this conversation was over. She took off down the hallway, ignoring him shouting after her.

It was a waste of her time to take him up on his offer anyway. She didn’t need the self defense training. She just wanted to see if his guilt would finally kick in enough to make him tell her the truth.

She took a few deep breaths before storming into Thelonious’ office. She caught a glimpse of Marcus’ confused face as she closed the door, and she couldn’t help but smirk. He’d probably run straight to Bellamy’s to see what she was up to, not that he’d be able to see. Raven deactivated the office camera.

“Now is not a good time,” Thelonious muttered as Clarke plopped down in the chair across from him.

“Do I look like I care?” she snapped, and his head jerked up in confusion. She could see him start to get nervous. After all, this was the first time the two of them had been left alone since she got back from the hospital and punched him. Hell, she could still see the slight bruising on his cheek.

Thelonious slammed his pen down and slid the papers he was looking at into a drawer. “What can I do for you?” he asked, narrowing his eyes at her.

“I want The City of Light,” Clarke said calmly, and his eyes widened in response. “And I want Wells’ spot at The Ark.”

“Why the hell would I give you either of those?” he growled, leaning forward on his desk.

“Because you left me to die,” Clarke replied, raising an eyebrow. “You owe me. Plus, Wells already sold his stock to me. Without me voting in your direction, you no longer have the majority vote at The Ark.”

Thelonious looked her over carefully, likely trying to figure out what the hell she was up to. But he should have seen Clarke ending up with the stock coming, especially with Wells’ spectacular exit from the family over Mt. Weather.

“I would also like a very large check made out to The City of Light from you, since I imagine there isn’t a lot there for me to work with,” Clarke added in with a smirk.

“You are asking a lot of me and not offering anything in return,” he grumbled, cocking his head to the side.

“What I offer is me being your perfect daughter in public, since people are going to start asking questions about why your son can’t stand to be near you anymore,” she snapped, and his brows furrowed as he looked down at his hands. “More importantly, I’ll keep it to myself that when ransom negotiations took place you chose to let me die. I feel like that wouldn’t be good for The Ark’s stock value.”

Thelonious leaned back in his chair, thinking this over for a few moments. Clarke didn’t move. She just sat there patiently, not breaking her intense gaze. She knew she had him. And it wasn’t like her getting to The Ark would get her any Mt. Weather evidence anyway. She just wanted to get closer to Thelonious.

“I have one question before I agree,” he sighed, and Clarke raised her eyebrows. “Are you making a move for Griffin Global?”

Of course, that’s what he thought this was. He had been convinced since Clarke returned that all of this was a ploy for her father’s company. Clarke had implied it on multiple occasions to piss her mother off or to throw Thelonious off her scent.

“Perhaps,” Clarke replied, and Thelonious narrowed his eyes at her.

“There are only two ways for you to get it, Clarke. And I don’t see you waiting six years,” he noted, and Clarke bit her tongue. She knew what he was implying. Like she would ever use Bellamy to get that damn company.

“Do we have an agreement or not?” she snapped, and he nodded with a sigh. She practically jumped out of her seat, already making a list of things she had to get done before The City of Light event.

“Wait,” Thelonious whispered, and Clarke turned back to look at him. He was pinching the bridge of his nose, looking more frustrated than usual. “Have you had any more contact with Alie that I need to worry about?”

“No, why?” Clarke asked nervously, and his lips twitched in response.

“I just needed to know just in case. She’s under investigation for cyber terrorism and we can’t have anyone in this family connected to her in any way,” he explained, and Clarke’s brows furrowed. She knew that was Raven’s plan for Becca all along… but they all agreed to wait.

“Haven’t seen her since my trip,” Clarke said quickly, before storming out of his office. She practically sprinted toward the garage, fishing her keys out her pocket on the way.

By the time she got to Echo’s apartment, Clarke was fuming.

“What did you do to Becca?” Clarke shouted as soon as the door was shut behind her. Then, she saw Raven sleepily rubbing her eyes on the couch. “Where is Echo?”

“She said she had something to take care of,” Raven mumbled, as she pulled open her laptop. “Look, she told me to go ahead on taking out Becca. She was on the move and we had to act fast before we lost her again.”

Clarke bit her lip as she started pacing by the front door. Maybe it wasn’t such a bad thing that Becca was out of the way this early. It wasn’t like she would _ever_ hand over whatever evidence she had to protect herself from the family. Clarke didn’t need to freak out over this one.

“Did you get what you needed from Jaha?” Raven asked as she pulled up the feeds from Bellamy’s house.

“Yes. While this whole mess gets sorted out, I can start working through the victim list. It’s not a lot but it’s a start,” she sighed as she plopped down next to Raven on the couch.

“Good. Hey, you’re doing what you can,” Raven reassured, reaching over to grab Clarke’s hand. With a sigh, Clarke rested her head on Raven’s shoulder and glanced at the screen. Bellamy, Marcus, Monty, and Jasper were all gathered around his kitchen table discussing something. “Don’t freak out, but Bellamy found your Tsing file.”

Clarke threw her head back, clenching her eyes shut. Of course, he did. He was given basically free reign around that house, so of course, he would take advantage of it. Whatever feelings they might have for each other didn’t change much, it seemed.

“If it’s any consolation, it’s really helping them out,” Raven explained as Clarke bit her lip.

“Put your headphones in. I don’t want to hear any of this,” Clarke whispered. Too many of those pages contained painful recounts of what happened to her father… and she just couldn’t handle hearing that today. Not on August 3rd.

Besides, she had enough to be thinking about today. She had no idea where Echo was on tracking down Emerson. She had no idea what Echo had been up to, actually. She hadn’t seen Echo since before Clarke was abducted. She had to prepare some kind of statement for tonight since it was clear her mother wasn’t going to be able to go. And then there was the Bellamy issue…

She wasn’t sure if she trusted him. She loved him… but she hardly knew him. What she knew about him was from the files she had read on him, from watching him on the feeds of his office, from the brief moments of honesty amidst all the lying. And she had been playing along for a while now. If there was an accusation to be made, she should have done it by now. She couldn’t tell him that she knew without also confessing what she had been up to. If it was just Clarke involved, she might be willing to… but Echo and Raven are relying on her to keep their secrets. While she loved Bellamy, she still couldn’t trust him.

“Call Echo right now,” Raven snapped, unplugging her headphones from the laptop.

“He was found dead,” Clarke heard Octavia say on the feed, and Clarke leaned over to see what was going on. Marcus and Bellamy were sharing a concerned look, while Monty and Jasper seemed to be at a loss for words.

“Check Jaha’s bank records. We need to see if he ordered the hit,” Marcus finally decided.

“Who is dead?” Clarke asked, and Raven worried her lip.

“Carl Emerson,” she whispered, and Clarke’s stomach dropped. She knew exactly what happened to Emerson.

 _Echo happened_.

 

Clarke waited until Echo slipped out to go to the bathroom to follow after her. Echo had been purposefully avoiding Clarke’s phone calls all day, and had been essentially hiding from her since getting to the fundraiser.

Clarke locked the door behind her, glancing to see if there was anyone in the stalls… there weren’t.

“Start talking,” Clarke growled, and Echo jumped. She turned around, resting her back against the counter as she studied Clarke carefully.

“I don’t know what you want me to say,” Echo said carefully, and Clarke’s jaw clenched.

“Why did you kill Emerson? We needed him alive,” Clarke snapped, pinching the bridge of her nose. He was a direct link to Thelonious killing both her father and Tsing. He was what Clarke had been waiting for.

“My confrontation with him didn’t go according to plan. If I didn’t kill him, he was going to kill me,” Echo said through gritted teeth, and Clarke threw her head back. She knew that wasn’t the whole truth. Echo was smart, calculating. It was unlikely that Emerson could potentially best her especially when she had the element of surprise on her side.

“You’re lying about something,” Clarke accused, and Echo crossed her arms and cocked her head to the side. “And you didn’t consult me about Becca.”

“You were busy playing house with your fake boyfriend,” Echo spat, trying to push past Clarke on her way to the door, but Clarke pushed her back, trapping her against the wall.

“You have to fucking talk to me,” Clarke growled.

“When was I supposed to talk to you? When you were snuggled up with your lying boyfriend every night? Or while you’re watching that same video from the night you were taken over and over convincing yourself that this was real for him?”

Echo caught Clarke’s hand before she tried to slap her, narrowing her eyes in warning.

“He used you,” Echo whispered.

“You used me too, remember?” Clarke snapped.

“I fessed up after I saved your life,” Echo reminded, and Clarke pulled away. “And I’m not using you anymore. We help each other. But Bellamy… he is still using you.”

Clarke opened her mouth to say something… but there was nothing to say. Echo was right. Bellamy was still using her. Or at least, he could be. Clarke didn’t know if he was currently using her or if he was just planning to continue using her in the future. Echo took this opportunity to brush past Clarke and walk out the door.

Clarke took a few deep breaths before stepping out of the bathroom. She could hear everyone shuffling toward their seats, so Clarke didn’t bother chasing after Echo. When she got into the ballroom, Bellamy was sitting at their table, scanning the room, likely looking for her.

She shot him a reassuring smile as she made her way toward the front.

“Where did you go?” he asked, as Clarke sat down.

“Just the bathroom. Ran into Echo,” she explained, and he grabbed her hand. She glanced behind her, seeing Echo sitting at the same table as Shawn Gillmer. Echo briefly made eye contact before glancing at Bellamy, then she rolled her eyes.

“Are you sure you’re feeling alright?” Bellamy whispered, and she raised an eyebrow at him.

“Of course,” she replied, but that didn’t seem to satisfy him. “What did Marcus tell you?” she asked, although she already had a good idea. After all, Bellamy probably saw the footage of Clarke beating the shit out of Marcus from this morning. He already knew far too much about what happened to her father. Bellamy knew what today was. And Clarke knew what today was to him too.

“Not much. But I know what today is for you. You know you can talk to me about this stuff, right?” he confirmed, and Clarke studied his face carefully. She knew there was genuine concern there, but she couldn’t help but wonder if he was just saying that to get information. Clarke swallowed, realizing that Echo’s words were starting to get to her. Clarke was fine before she talked to Echo… more or less. She still didn’t trust Bellamy, but she also wasn’t constantly over analyzing every little thing he said or did.

“It was eighteen years ago. I’m fine,” she replied, before turning to face forward. She applauded as Thelonious stepped up onto the stage, and she could see Bellamy grit his teeth as he did the same.

“Thank you all for being here tonight. Normally, my wife would be here to speak to you all, but she hasn’t been feeling well lately,” Thelonious started, and Clarke fought not to roll her eyes. _Not feeling well_ was a generous way to describe getting day drunk because she felt guilty for marrying the man who murdered her first husband. “Of course, I am more than happy to step in. The Ark has been just as much of a supporter of The City of Light as Griffin Global has. And going forward, both companies pledge their full support to continue to fight for the families of those lost at Mt. Weather, eighteen years ago. It is in this spirit of the future that I introduce your host for this evening,” he continued, and Clarke forced herself to take a deep breath.

It wasn’t like she genuinely wanted to have anything to do with The City of Light. But it was one of the few things that Clarke could actually fix right now. Getting justice for the victims was always the priority, but the victims’ families needed the support the organization promised all those years ago. And her mother and Thelonious wouldn’t be able to keep screwing them over if Clarke took it over.

“She is easily the strongest person I’ve ever known. Her reputation regarding her charity work needs no introduction. She represents the future of Griffin Global, of The City of Light,” he said before pausing, and his eyes caught on Clarke. She could feel Bellamy tensing up beside her… and she probably should have let him know about this ahead of time. He was bound to have questions. “And of The Ark. Please, give a warm welcome to my daughter, Clarke Griffin.”

With a smug smile, Clarke made her way forward. She offered Thelonious the sweetest hug she could manage. “I’m glad you and I finally understand each other,” Clarke whispered before pulling away. She made her way up to the podium, specifically avoiding Bellamy’s panicked expression. “Thank you all. Tonight, we are all gathered in remembrance of what happened on August 3rd, 1999. Most of us remember exactly where we were eighteen years ago, when an explosion collapsed Mt. Weather, killing 382 people,” she started, her stomach tightening at her own words. “I certainly remember,” she explained, glancing over at where Thelonious had taken his seat. “And I was only six-years-old at the time. In fact, I remember everything about that day.” She watched as Thelonious’ face faltered, his eyes wide with panic.

“We lost 382 people on that day, and Arkadia mourns them every single day. But it is important for us to also look after those who the Mt. Weather victims left behind. It is no secret that there is more The City of Light can do to help those who lost their loved ones at Mt. Weather. And as I am taking over all operations, I promise complete transparency about how your donations will be used.”

 

She felt someone grab her by the wrist, dragging her backwards.

“What the hell was that?” Thelonious whispered, and Clarke turned to face his furious face.

“What was what?” Clarke asked, cocking her head to the side.

“I don’t know what you think you know—”

“I don’t know anything, remember?” Clarke reminded, crossing her arms. “No one would believe a word I say since all records point to me being crazy,” she explained, and Thelonious narrowed his eyes at her.

“If this is you getting back at me for what happened with Cage, knock it off,” he growled, and Clarke glanced over his shoulder to see Bellamy studying them closely, that concerned look back on his face.

“I didn’t say a damn thing. Why would I out my own family for Mt. Weather?” she whispered. “I would lose literally everything. And you and I can agree that would be fairly stupid of me.”

“I would think on today of all days you would be a bit more careful. What would your father say if he was here to see your little outbursts and temper tantrums?” he spat, gripping onto Clarke’s wrist. Her eyes widened at the mention of her father on today of all days.

“Well, I’ll never know since _someone_ murdered him,” Clarke growled, twisting Thelonious’ wrist as she pulled from his grasp. She broke away from him, starting to stride over toward Bellamy so she could get the hell out of here before she snapped.

“Clarke Griffin,” Thelonious snapped, and Clarke turned back around and raised an eyebrow at him. “I have no idea what you’re trying to suggest.”

Clarke took a few careful steps toward him, noting that there was no one within earshot. “I’m sorry. Let me be more clear,” she spat. “You once told me that I was smart like my father. But you were smarter than my father and I needed to keep that in mind.”

“Clarke.”

“I know something my father didn’t,” Clarke smirked, and Thelonious’ jaw clenched. “I know exactly what kind of person you are.”

“You better stop before you say something you regret,” he warned.

“My father was a good man. He did everything the way he was supposed to,” Clarke explained, thinking back to how he was going to turn himself in for Mt. Weather, knowing that he would spend the rest of his life in prison for it. He was going to do it because he was a good person, because it was the right thing to do.

“And you were lucky to be raised by a man like that,” Thelonious said carefully.

“But he never got to raise me, did he?” she snapped, and his eyes widened. “You did. Which means I never learned from him how to be a good person who does things the right way. Instead, I learned from you how to make people hurt for crossing me.”

“Clarke.”

“If you _ever_ leave me to die like that again, I will take everything from you,” Clarke warned before turning around.

“Clarke!” Thelonious shouted, but she kept walking toward Bellamy.

Bellamy’s eyes were concerned as Clarke approached him, but he didn’t say a word. She just took his arm and started leading him toward the exit.

 

“Did your speech go okay?” her mother slurred as Clarke helped her get into bed.

“Yes, it was fine,” Clarke replied, grabbing the Advil from her drawer.

“I think what you want to do with The City of Light is so good,” she whispered, closing her eyes. “Your dad would be so proud of you.”

Clarke clenched her eyes shut, so damn tired of everyone bringing up her father today. Clarke didn’t want to think about her dad. She didn’t want to think about how furious he would be with all of them. He was going to fix this eighteen years ago, and they stopped him. Marcus was supposed to pick up the fight, and was only now getting around to doing something about it.

“I miss him too,” her mother whispered, and Clarke started moving toward the door. There were plenty of things Clarke would put up with, but this wasn’t one of them. She didn’t care how guilty her mother felt. She wasn’t having this conversation with her.

Clarke tugged the pins out of her hair and tugged off her shoes, before going back downstairs.

“How is she doing?” Bellamy asked, and Clarke could still hear the home videos playing on the tv screen.

“She’s drunk and sad,” Clarke mumbled, glancing up at a video of her dad helping her find Easter eggs. She was supposed to get more than six years of that. He was supposed to be _here_. Her father was supposed to get mad when he found out she dropped out of med school, but ultimately decide that art is okay as long as it was what Clarke really wanted. He was supposed to be the one getting to know Bellamy, not Thelonious. He was supposed to get more than six years of being a dad.

“Clarke,” Bellamy whispered.

“My mother remarried within a year. When I tried to talk to her about him, she would shut down, refusing to even speak his name,” Clarke explained, shaking her head. “Excuse me if I’m not in the mood to comfort her when she never gave me the same courtesy,” she snapped, and Bellamy made his way over to her.

She didn’t realize how tense her entire body was from anger until Bellamy’s hand rested on her back calmly. She leaned back onto him, feeling like a small weight was being lifted off her. “Clarke,” he whispered, and she felt his arms wrap tightly around her.

And maybe her exhaustion from the day was finally setting in, or maybe she was tired of being angry. Maybe it was just the sound of her dad laughing at Clarke struggling to find the last egg, or maybe it was the realization that her mother felt like she deserved to miss that wonderful man… but Clarke broke down, burying her face into Bellamy’s chest.

 

“I just wish I remembered more,” Clarke sighed, glancing up at Bellamy who was watching her carefully as he ran his fingers through her hair. She had been a sobbing mess for most of the night, so much so that Bellamy literally carried her upstairs.

“You were only six,” he whispered, and she nodded. But there was only so much she could remember from the few years she got with him, especially since no one in her life would even talk to her about him to help keep his memory alive.

She studied Bellamy’s face carefully, looking for anything to betray how he was feeling today. After all, Clarke wasn’t the only one grieving a parent today. Bellamy was only ten when he walked in on his mother’s “suicide” and likely was going through something similar today. But Clarke couldn’t ask him about it because she wasn’t supposed to know. Most of what she knew about Bellamy was from the A.L.I.E. program, not from what he told her.

“How old were you?” Clarke whispered, because she officially did know that he was orphaned.

“Ten when I lost my mom. Never knew my dad though,” he replied, looking up at the ceiling with a strange expression on his face. “Octavia was five.”

Clarke reached over to grab his hand, pressing a small kiss to his palm to reassure him. He glanced down at her softly before kissing her forehead.

“You’ve never talked to me about your mom before,” Clarke whispered, and his lips twitched nervously. She knew why, of course. But tonight, Clarke just wanted a real moment with Bellamy. Something honest that she could hold onto amidst all the scheming and lies. A sign that he trusted her with something.

“Like you, I didn’t really have someone to help me grieve when it happened,” he sighed, staring intensely at her ceiling fan. “Octavia and I got split up. I didn’t have any other family. It was just easier for me to not talk about it. Still is.”

“Bell,” Clarke whispered, and he glanced back down at her. “If you ever wanted to talk to someone, you know you could talk to me, right?” she pleaded, and a soft smile formed on his lips.

“I know,” he replied, but Clarke’s chest tightened. There was a chance he would never tell her these things, even though she desperately wanted him to.

She wanted them both to tell each other the truth, to be able to trust each other. She loved him. And she wanted to be able to let herself love him without feeling a sharp pang in her chest as soon as she remembered all the complications that went with that fact.

 

“I thought it was time you two talked,” Raven huffed, and Clarke started tapping her fingers on the table, avoiding Echo’s intense glare.

The three of them sat in silence for several minutes before Raven started groaning.

“Okay, I’ll start,” Raven snapped, and Clarke let out a sigh. “We should have talked to you about going after Becca before we did it. For that, I’m sorry, Clarke.”

“I understand why you did it,” Clarke said carefully before glancing over at Echo who didn’t even look sorry. “And I’m sorry that I overreacted when it seems that you two made the right call.”

“Alright, Echo? Anything you want to add?” Raven asked, and Echo pressed her lips together as she thought that over.

“Sorry I murdered Emerson,” she finally grumbled out, looking down at her hands in frustration.

“But you’d do it again?” Clarke asked, and Echo glanced up at her with a shrug. Clarke threw her head back in frustration. “Of fucking course.”

“Oh, don’t act like that’s what you’re really mad about,” Echo snapped, and Clarke shot her a warning glare.

“What _else_ could you have done?” Raven groaned, and Clarke bit her lip.

“I said less than flattering things about her boyfriend who is using her,” Echo explained casually, and Clarke could tell that Raven was sympathizing with Echo.

“Come on. You were the one who pointed out that it became real for him,” Clarke grumbled, and Raven nodded along.

“Yeah, I think his feelings for you are real. That doesn’t mean I think we should trust him,” Raven replied, and Echo started smirking.

“Told you,” Echo sneered, and Clarke swallowed.

“Echo, this isn’t about what we think, though,” Raven snapped, before glancing back at Clarke. “We do need to figure out what to do about Bellamy. We’re working toward the same thing as him and his crew. But he is using you.”

“Okay, Clarke shouldn’t get a vote in this decision since he’s brainwashed her into loving him back,” Echo snapped, and Clarke stood up abruptly, shooting her a threatening glare as she moved toward her side of the table.

“My vote is the only one that matters here since I’m the one he’s using,” Clarke growled.

“Clarke, Echo is just worried about you and it’s manifesting itself in the bitchiest way possible,” Raven groaned as she smacked Echo’s arm. “Echo, Bellamy hasn’t really used Clarke since she was kidnapped. Sure, he took the Tsing files, but that didn’t actually harm Clarke. He’s just gathering data.”

Clarke pressed her lips together, her mind jumping back to all the nights Bellamy stayed up to comfort her, to all the undeniably _real_ moments they had… she had to believe that after those moments that she could trust him enough to take the next step forward.

“What if I told him I know?” Clarke asked, and Echo’s eyes widened in panic. “Not anything about what we’ve been doing. Nothing about you two. No scheming. Just that I know what happened at Mt. Weather and that I figured out what he was doing on my own.”

“I’d say you’re a fucking idiot,” Echo snapped, before Raven slapped her in the back of the head.

“It could work,” Raven said, narrowing her eyes at Clarke. “I mean, he clearly cares about Clarke. If she told him that, it’d be an opportunity for him to come clean, to tell her what he’s been planning, to bring her into it. And if he really is still playing her, he’d probably take off and work on a new plan. It’s an easy way for us to test if we can trust him without exposing the work we’ve been doing.”

Clarke glanced over at Echo who was working through what Raven was saying with a skeptical frown.

“Echo, please,” Clarke pleaded, because no matter how much of a bitch Echo had been lately, Clarke wouldn’t go through with telling Bellamy if she genuinely thought it was a bad idea.

“I have a condition,” Echo groaned as she buried her face in her hands. “You have to wait to tell him.”

“How long?”

“Long enough for him to have another opportunity to use you,” Echo sighed, glancing up at Clarke. “Right now, he’s not making any moves because you’re still recovering from what happened with Cage. But he’s planning something. And if it’s something that’s going to hurt you, I say you shouldn’t tell him.”

“He’s not going to hurt me again,” Clarke huffed, crossing her arms.

“Then, what’s the harm in waiting it out? If you are so certain you’re right?” Echo asked, and Clarke clenched her jaw. Clarke wasn’t certain she was right. She didn’t trust Bellamy. “If he uses you for whatever it is he plans to do, then clearly you can’t trust him with the truth. But if he is actually a good guy and finds another way to get his revenge that doesn’t involve manipulating you, then you can tell him everything and all of us can work together as one happy little revenge obsessed family.”

“Fine,” Clarke decided, glancing up at Raven who was nodding along in agreement.

She took a deep breath as Raven and Echo got back to their Shawn Gillmer plan. This could be okay, she kept telling herself. Bellamy learned his lesson. He cared about Clarke. He loved Clarke. He wasn’t going to hurt her again… she had to trust that.


	9. Betrayal

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yikes, it has been almost a month since I last updated this. I'm so sorry, guys. That's the longest I've ever gone without updating a WIP. I got caught up in Whisper Your Love and I'll Whisper Mine, but I didn't think it would be as long as it was. Anyway, I'm back... and I came back with a shit ton of angst this chapter and some smut at the end. 
> 
> Just as a note going forward, I might not pace this fic the same way that I paced Double Infinity. Since you've all read Double Infinity (or should have because if you've made it this far without reading it, you've spoiled all the good twists from Double Infinity already), I'm not going to repeat every little scene that Clarke is in. Plus, after the wedding chapter, Clarke is up to a lot more than Bellamy is aware of, so that may take more chapters than it covered in Double Infinity. 
> 
> Thanks for sticking with me! I promise not to keep you waiting for a month again, but I do have other projects I'm working on at the same time, so the rapid fire updates are gonna be kind of rare. Love you guys!

Clarke took a few practice shots while she waited for Echo to arrive. It had been a long time since the two of them went to an indoor shooting range… but to be honest, Clarke hadn’t thought a lot about using her gun since she got back to Arkadia… at least not until she was kidnapped. That would have been one day where it would have been useful.

To be honest, Clarke was just grateful for a break from The City of Light. She had been pushing herself hard these past few weeks reaching out to victims’ families and making reparations.

“You sure you haven’t come here to practice?” Echo asked as she walked up, and Clarke pulled her headphones off.

“I’ve always had good aim,” Clarke replied, raising an eyebrow at her. She saw Echo gesture to the scar on her hand as evidence to the contrary, and Clarke rolled her eyes.

Clarke watched in amusement as Echo lined up her shot, before shooting three straight shots right in the center. “I have something to tell you that you’re not going to like,” Echo muttered as she put her gun down on the table in front of her. “And I know you like to shoot things when you’re angry, hence why we are here.”

Clarke swallowed before putting her gun down as well. She knew whatever it was that Echo had to say had something to do with Bellamy. After all, a month had passed, and nothing had happened. None of them were making any moves. Clarke was still itching to tell him that she knew, but she was not about to break her promise to Echo. She would sit and wait to see if he made a move to determine if she could trust him or not.

“Raven and I got impatient, so we used A.L.I.E. on them,” Echo confessed, and Clarke looked down at the ground. She bit her lip to keep from snapping at Echo, since Clarke had specifically told them _not_ to do that.

“Did you find something?” Clarke asked, hating the way Echo’s face faltered at the question. Clarke could feel her own chest tense up in anticipation, terrified that she was wrong about Bellamy.

“They’ve spent a lot of time looking over your father’s will, Clarke,” Echo whispered, and Clarke knew _exactly_ what that meant. “Bellamy bought a ring. They’re gonna try to use your marriage as a way to speed up you getting access to Griffin Global and then hack you to get the documents they need.”

Clarke clenched her eyes shut, bracing her hands on the table in front of her. She had wondered why Bellamy had started acting secretive again. The honest moments between them had gotten fewer and far between… and she felt like Bellamy was pulling away from her. Clarke had hoped that it was just his guilt about lying to her that caused it… but now she knew he had so much more to feel guilty about.

Echo was talking again, but Clarke stopped listening. She tugged her headphones back on, before reloading her gun. Then, she fired off every shot she could, each bullet hitting the dead center of the silhouette’s head. By the time she took the last shot, her hand was shaking. Echo pulled the gun from her hand, her eyes trained on Clarke with a nervousness Clarke was not used to from her.

“I’m fine,” Clarke snapped as she threw off her headphones.

“Clarke.”

“I am going to go break up with him and then I’m getting the fuck out of Arkadia,” Clarke huffed. This was _too_ far. Clarke had already been hurt enough by coming back here, and now _this_. Bellamy was willing to use her even for this. In his mind, Clarke was just innocently unaware, and he was willing to _marry her_ for his damn scheme.

Echo gripped onto Clarke’s wrist pulling her back. “I watched the feed from Bellamy’s house. It was all Marcus Kane’s idea,” Echo explained, and Clarke narrowed her eyes at Echo. “And I think you should play along.”

“What?” Clarke shouted before Echo shushed her.

“It’s a good plan,” Echo whispered, and Clarke swallowed. She knew it was a good plan, a genius plan, even. It was one that Echo had wanted Clarke to pursue a while back, but Clarke was not willing to string someone along into _marriage_ just for this. There was always another way. “If you marry him, you can finally take Griffin Global. We’d get the information we need, and this whole thing would be over quickly. No more scheming, no more deaths.”

“You want me to marry Bellamy?” Clarke asked, crossing her arms.

“No, I want you to _use_ him,” Echo corrected. Just like he is _using_ her. There was something oddly poetic about it, yet Clarke’s stomach turned at the thought of agreeing to _marry_ him when he clearly did not care enough about her to find another way. “Get justice for Mt. Weather. When it’s all over, I can resume my mission and you can deal with Bellamy however you want.”

At that, Clarke started reloading her gun before firing off another round.

 

Clarke had calmed down enough to watch the footage that Echo was referring to, though his little breakdown with Octavia was not enough to make Clarke sympathize with his “plight”. After all, Clarke could have finished this whole thing off herself by just marrying _anyone_ and never did. There were lines she would not even cross…

… which made it even harder to stand beside Bellamy as if nothing was wrong while Echo took the stage. He had hardly made any eye contact with her tonight, clearly debating with what he was planning to do to her. It infuriated her, especially given what he knows about what she _knew_. The more time went on, the more she wondered if he would ever actually tell her the truth. She knew there was some part of him that was suspicious about how much she knew, and she had not been subtle in dropping hints that she was well aware of what kind of monsters her family were.

“Are you sure you’re okay?” Clarke asked, and Bellamy didn’t even look at her. He nodded, keeping his eyes forward as if there was nothing else going on here. Did he think Clarke was stupid? That she wouldn’t figure out what he was doing? Or that she would be so easily thrown by how much she cared about him that she wouldn’t notice his suspicious behavior and scheming?

In a huff, Clarke let go off his arm and took off for the exit. She heard him call her name, but she kept walking. If she stood in there another second, she would likely snap at him and caused a huge scene. And all the while she was beginning to _hate_ him for what he was doing to her, her mind kept flashing to all the loving moments he offered her… the _real_ ones. Maybe Clarke wouldn’t be as angry if it had all been a lie. If it had all been a lie, it wouldn’t be so personal. But Clarke didn’t know what was real and what wasn’t anymore, which was making it hard to breathe.

She sucked in a long breath the second she made it outside, feeling instantly relieved by the cool air washing against her face.  She started pacing on the sidewalk, trying to figure out what her next move should be. She knew what Echo and Raven thought, and their argument was valid. Why not use Bellamy if he was already using her?

 _Because it might rip out what little was left of Clarke’s broken heart_.

She didn’t want to marry him. She didn’t even want to see him. She didn’t want to hear his voice or have him touch her. She wanted to run as fast as she could and get out of this for good. After all, she could have a good life anywhere else. She could change her name and make a new life for herself where no one knew her or Mt. Weather. It would be selfish, but Clarke couldn’t deny how _perfect_ never seeing any of these people ever again sounded.

“Clarke,” she heard Bellamy say, and her eyes clenched shut. Of course, he chooses _now_ to be concerned about her.

“I just needed some air,” Clarke snapped, not even turning to look at him.

“Clarke, what’s wrong?” Bellamy asked, and Clarke jerked her head up to look at him. She wanted to scream that she knew… that she knew everything. _That_ was what was wrong. She knew every horrible thing Bellamy had done in an attempt to get close to avenging Mt. Weather, and she knew the _last_ horrible thing he was willing to do.

What was wrong was that she wanted to tell him that she knew. She wanted to scream at him for being just as bad as her family, to point out that the ends do not justify the means. But she can’t trust Bellamy, not now that she knew just how _far_ he was willing to go. It wasn’t just her life on the line here. She had Echo and Raven to worry about. And she wanted to stay close to what Bellamy was doing to make sure no one she loved got hurt like she did.

“I could ask you the same thing,” Clarke finally said, watching the guilt seep through Bellamy’s dark eyes. “For weeks, you have been acting strange. It’s like you’re here, but you’re not actually here,” she started, giving him _one last chance_ to just tell her the goddamn truth for once in his life.

“I’m sorry,” he sighed, closing his eyes. As if those words could ever be enough.

She loved him, and he was using her. That was the truth… and there was no way around it. Maybe he loved her back, or maybe Clarke really was that stupid to fall for it. But he knew she loved him, probably more than she had ever let herself love anyone… and he is still using her.

“Something is up with you, yet you won’t talk to me about it.”

“Clarke.”

“Are you keeping something from me? And think long and hard before you answer ‘no,’” Clarke threatened because she wasn’t sure she could keep up this charade a moment longer.

“Yes,” he confessed, and for a moment, Clarke could breathe again. “I just didn’t know how to say this to you.”

Clarke’s eyes widened at him as she held her breath. _This was it_. If he was ever going to confide in her, it was now. If he just told her, she would forgive him. They could talk it out, she could help him with his plan… they could all join forces and Clarke could find a way to get past this.

“I’ve been acting weird because I’ve been trying to figure out how to ask you something,” he said, and Clarke slammed her eyes shut and swallowed. _No, anything but this_.

Echo’s words started seeping into her thought again, and Clarke remembered that she did have one choice in this. Yes or no. Say no, and it’s done. Bellamy is gone and so is the cleanest chance to take down those who destroyed Mt. Weather. Say yes, and she would get to use him just like he used her. She’d end up married to him, divorce him as soon as possible, and maybe sleep at night knowing that there was finally justice for Mt. Weather. Unfortunately, neither of these were perfect choices.

When Bellamy finally looked up at her, Clarke could feel her own face turn to stone. “I’ve been trying to figure out how to ask you to marry me,” he said, and the knot in Clarke’s chest grew tighter.

“Well, I think you’re supposed to start by getting down on one knee,” Clarke replied, raising an eyebrow. Bellamy rolled his eyes playfully, and Clarke felt her chest pang at the sincerity of that one brief moment. _None of this is real for him_ , Clarke reminded herself as he got down on one knee. _And none of it had to be real for her either._

“Better?”

“Technically, you still haven’t asked me anything,” she replied, cocking her head to the side.

“Oh my God, you are difficult,” he mumbled, and Clarke forced herself to smirk.

“I’m not the one who chose to propose on a sidewalk outside a Marriott in front of the guys who work the valet,” Clarke pointed out, a bit annoyed that her fake proposal wasn’t even a good one. If Bellamy was going to use her, the least he could do is put some actual effort into it instead of proposing the second he thought Clarke was about to blow up at him.

“Can I ask the damn question already?” he groaned, looking up at her with a small smirk on his face.

“I don’t know, can you?” Clarke teased.

“Clarke, I love you so much. Even when you’re correcting me on how to propose to you,” he joked, and Clarke did her best to keep her face _happy_ even though all she wanted to do was slap Bellamy across the face. In fact, that was _exactly_ what she was going to do to him once this mess was all over. “If you’d let me, I’d love to spend the rest of my life with you,” Bellamy lied, and Clarke forced herself to take a deep breath. “Clarke Griffin, will you marry me?”

This was her last chance to get out. She could say no. It could all be over. Bellamy could be out of her life instantly. But she could get everything she needed if she said yes, even though it meant agreeing to this sham of a marriage.

Clarke nearly choked on the word _yes_ and before she knew it, Bellamy was crashing his lips onto hers. Clarke’s eyes slammed shut as she reminded herself that this was not real, not even a little bit. She was a step for him, and he was a step for her too. If she just remembered this wasn’t real, she might make it out of this okay.

 

“I say the quicker the better,” Thelonious said as Clarke and her mother reentered the room after their little discussion about the engagement. Her lies to Bellamy were nothing in comparison to the phenomenal acting job she just pulled off with her mother, saying that she was so desperate to marry Bellamy and that there was no one else she wants to be with… when in actuality Clarke fantasized about hitting him with her car just hours ago.

“Thelonious,” her mother snapped, and Clarke sat back down next to Bellamy and grabbed his hand. She saw him swallow nervously as she snuggled up beside him, and a smug feeling washed over Clarke. At least she could torture him with guilt for the time being.

“Abby, these two kids are in love. Why wait?” Thelonious asked.

“It’s just a little quick. They haven’t even known each other that long. They should use their engagement to get to know each other,” her mother argued, but Clarke kept her eyes on Thelonious. There was something off about him wanting to push this wedding up… and there was no way in hell it didn’t have anything to do with Griffin Global.

“But Wells is leaving soon for that year long mission trip. Surely, Clarke would want to get married before he leaves so that Wells can be there to walk her down the aisle,” he argued, and Clarke glanced over at her mother… realizing this was not about Clarke at all. It was about what Thelonious was threatening to take away from her mother. “And waiting over a year is just too long. After all, we got married after just being engaged for two weeks.”

“What are you suggesting?” Clarke asked, her wedding now seeming more real all the sudden. Clarke was supposed to have a bit more _time_ to get comfortable with what she was doing.

“That we get you two married in a month,” Thelonious said, and Clarke glanced over at Bellamy. A month… that was too soon. Or maybe that was a good thing, she wondered as Bellamy nodded his approval to her. She would only have to play along for a month. She could file for divorce almost immediately after getting her hands on the Griffin Global files from Mt. Weather.

One month… she could stomach using Bellamy for just one month.

She and Bellamy listened to her mother and Thelonious argue for a few more minutes about the wedding date as Clarke slowly came to terms that she was about to become his _wife_ in less than a month.

Her mother stormed off in a huff, making up some excuse for needing to step out when they all knew the real reason she was storming off. Bellamy got a phone call, which Clarke saw was actually from Marcus, and he stepped out as well. Clarke gestured for Thelonious to walk with her outside, not sure she wanted their conversation to be witnessed from the bugs Jasper planted on top of their fireplace.

“So, you want me to take Griffin Global?” Clarke asked as soon as the door was shut behind them, and a smirk creeped onto Thelonious’ lips.

“I am currently angry with your mother. Don’t tell me you don’t want it. After all, why else would you agree to marry him this soon?”

Clarke pursed her lips, trying to decide if it’s even worth arguing over. Thelonious would never buy that Clarke was marrying for love, even if it were true.

“But you need to know that your mother is going to fight tooth and nail to make sure she keeps her place there,” he said, and Clarke’s eyes widened in a panic. “The board can deem you unfit, and your mother can be quite persuasive.”

Clarke thought this over as she glanced back into the window, seeing Bellamy sit back down on the couch. “What do I have to do to keep that from happening?”

“Well, for starters, you can accept my help,” he offered, and Clarke turned back to raise an eyebrow at him.

“In exchange for…?”

“Oh, this benefits me as well. I would like your mother to stay preoccupied for the time being. She wants a divorce, and I need time to convince her that would be a bad idea,” he said, and Clarke’s lips twitched at his words. She still wasn’t so sure about him willingly helping Clarke take Griffin Global but couldn’t figure out how much he knew about what she knew.

“Let’s discuss it at work tomorrow,” Clarke decided, and his lips turned up into a smirk as she walked back into the house.

 

Clarke practically shoved Bellamy back onto his bed once they got to his house. “What has gotten into you?” Bellamy chuckled, as Clarke pulled her dress off over her head.

“We’re _engaged_ , Bell,” Clarke explained with the sweetest smile she could muster as she climbed on top of him. She captured his lips, running her fingers through his hair. He whimpered as she tugged at his curls, probably a little too hard… but it was all she could do to keep from screaming. In a matter of days, she went from being hopeful that she and Bellamy were going to be okay to having him betray her trust and use her… and it was all leaving Clarke feeling twisted, fucked up, and confused. She could feel it every time he said he loved her in the way that she immediately believed it before reminding herself that he was probably lying. She could feel it every time she glanced down at her ring tonight and shuddered at the sight. She could feel it with every guilty glance she caught from Bellamy.

“Clarke,” he murmured against her lips, as Clarke reached down to unzip his pants. “I love—” he started before Clarke cut him off my kissing him. She couldn’t hear that lie right now… no, she just couldn’t. If she did, she might finally fall apart after hours of desperately trying to keep herself together following that damn proposal.

He reached up to unhook her bra, but Clarke grabbed his wrist quickly before pinning it down by the bed beside his head. “Keep your hands to yourself,” Clarke warned with a smirk, watching his eyes widen in response. Clarke climbed off him to tug his pants and boxers down. She let her gaze drop to his erection, whatever restraint she had being thrown out the window. She could deal with her fucked up feelings after. Right now, she just needed to feel _something_ else to keep her from tearing her hair out in anger.

“Baby, what are you doing?” he asked, and Clarke let her panties drop to the floor with a smirk.

“Nothing,” she teased as she climbed back over him. She leaned forward and took his bottom lip between her teeth, loving the feeling of him shuddering underneath her. She pulled her head away as he leaned up to kiss her, and a whine escaped his lips.

“Clarke, kiss me,” Bellamy whimpered.

“Hmm,” Clarke considered as she slid her hips back, her center grazing the tip of Bellamy’s cock as she did. She watched as a whimper escaped his lips, his hands creeping up her sides to push her back again. He leaned up to try and kiss her, but Clarke pushed him back down. “Ask me nicely.”

“Please, will you just kiss me?” he groaned, and Clarke grinded her hips against his erection again. “Clarke, please. I need you,” he whispered, and Clarke finally leaned down to kiss him… secretly loving that for once she was in control of him. She gripped back onto his curls as her tongue dove into his mouth. She hated that she loved the taste of his mouth, that she found it so goddamn addicting. She ended up ripping her lips away as she sat up, leaving him breathless beneath her.

She positioned herself right over his cock, watching Bellamy’s hooded eyes watch her lustfully. _At least he couldn’t fake this_ , Clarke thought to herself as she slowly lowered herself onto him. She wasn’t as ready for him as she usually was, but she found herself loving the slightly painful stretch. Her eyes slammed shut as she took as much of him as she could, listening only to the sound of Bellamy’s strangled groan as she lifted her hips back up.

She kept repeating the motion, keeping her eyes locked with Bellamy’s. His hands rested on her waist, his touch feeling like fire against her skin. He guided her as he thrust up into her, and Clarke tried to remind herself that this was just sex for him, nothing more. But when he threw his head back, Clarke found herself gripping his face tightly to make him look at her. She wasn’t going to let him look away from this, not when he was ripping her heart out every time he kissed her.

“Say it,” she whispered breathlessly.

“Say what?” he asked as he filled her up again.

“That you love me,” she murmured, closing her eyes.

“I love you, Clarke,” he said, his voice sounding so fucking sincere.

“Really?” she asked, hating herself for it. She was just torturing herself at this point. She knew everything coming out of his mouth was probably a lie. He was just using her to get to Griffin Global so he could get those fucking documents. She was probably nothing to him. If she was something to him, he wouldn’t be doing this to her.

“Fuck, Clarke. I love you so much,” he said, and Clarke’s eyes jerked open. “I have only ever loved you, Clarke. No one else before you, and no one after,” he promised, his eyes looking terrifyingly sincere… just like they did that night after she was kidnapped where she was so _sure_ that he loved her as desperately as she loved him. Her mind flashed back to the feed of him breaking down when she was kidnapped, before jerking her thoughts back to the issue at hand. She couldn’t think about that… she couldn’t let herself start to believe that he actually cared for her. Not again.

She felt the tears prickle at those words, and she threw herself forward to bury her face into his neck before he asked her what was wrong. She gripped his hair tighter as her teeth grazed his throat, focusing only on the feeling of his cock slamming up into her.

“You’re so beautiful, princess,” he murmured, and Clarke clenched her eyes shut. “And you feel so good. Fuck, I love you,” he said, his voice sounding wrecked as he spoke, almost like an apology for what he was doing to her.

Every word coming out of his mouth was torturing her. Her heart believed every lie sliding off his lips, while her mind screamed at her to not be this fucking stupid. She was smarter than this. She was better than this. She was not some fucking pawn in Bellamy and Marcus’ game. She could use him too. She could choose to stop loving him, she could turn off these feelings and just fuck him.

When Bellamy pushed her onto her back, she was grateful that he started kissing down her throat so she did not have to look into his eyes. She threw her head back as he hitched her leg up higher, thrusting even deeper into her. “You are everything to me,” he murmured right into her ear, and Clarke turned to capture his lips with hers before another torturous lie slipped off his lips.

He swallowed her screams as her nails dug into his back. She let them rake up and down, hoping that at least this would hurt him too… maybe not in the same way, but it was something. It would mark him the way his lies would always mark her.

She bit down hard on his lip as she came, savoring the growl that escaped from his throat. He buried his face into her neck as he followed after her, whispering too many sweet things… and Clarke felt like she was going to be sick.

She thought when he collapsed beside her the weight would lift off her… but it felt even heavier as she caught her breath. She quietly crept to the bathroom as he got his breathing under control, locking the door behind her before falling to the ground.

She looked down at her hand, seeing that _thing_ resting on her finger. It was a gorgeous ring, and Clarke hated it. And she hated Bellamy. _Fuck,_ she hated him.

She threw her head back as the tears started falling, that voice in her head whispering, _but you also love him_. And she _did_. She loved him far too much. That fact alone was going to break her.

She had to find a way to live with the fact that she loved and hated him simultaneously, at least for the next month. Clarke could keep herself busy with Griffin Global and this sham of a wedding… she could make dozens of excuses to avoid Bellamy so she could stop letting him torture her.

She cleaned off her tears before walking back into his bedroom. Bellamy was watching her closely as she grabbed one of his shirts from the drawer before throwing it over her head.

“God, I love seeing you in my clothes,” he smirked as Clarke climbed into bed beside him. “And I love you.”

He said that with such a sincerity that made Clarke’s rage flare back up. “I love you too,” she smiled sweetly, before pressing a kiss to his cheek. He wrapped his arm around her waist, pulling her into his chest. She hated how easy it was for him to play her, how at worst he was dealing with _some_ guilt over what he was doing… and Clarke realized that when all this was over, she was going to find a way to get back at him for this. “I can’t wait to marry you,” she said, already counting down the days until she could slap a brutal divorce on him and punch his gorgeous face.

She pressed a quick peck to his lips, before tucking herself into his side. Just one month… and she could finally level the playing field.


	10. Choices

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Get ready for all the pre-wedding angst. Next chapter is the wedding chapter, which I know a lot of you had been looking forward to. 
> 
> I'm sorry it's been taking me longer to crank out these last few updates, but this was the part of the story that would be the hardest to write. Just so much angst and Clarke going back and forth on if she thinks Bellamy actually loves her or not. I think I'll be able to speed up again once I get past the wedding and into the DRAMA. 
> 
> Thanks for all the love so far, guys. Love y'all!

Clarke felt like she was going to throw up. Everyone came into the house with beautifully wrapped gifts, congratulating Clarke on her wedding. They were all smiles, and all Clarke wanted to do was scream.

“You two really do photograph well together,” Diana Sydney said with that terrifying grin of hers.

“Well, we try our best,” Clarke forced out, surveying the room for literally _anyone_ who could save her from this conversation. All her friends were here, but unfortunately, they were all trapped in similarly frustrating conversations with people who had no business even being here. Clarke could only name half the women in this house; the rest were all associates and friends of the family that were only invited per Thelonious’ demands. “Excuse me. I need a refill,” Clarke murmured as she made her way toward the kitchen… only to be stopped three different times by complete strangers who wanted to gush over her sham of a wedding.

When she got into the kitchen, she braced her hands on the counter. She could do this. She had gotten through everything else, so far. If she could get through this bridal shower, all she would have left was the rehearsal dinner and the actual wedding. _She could do this_.

“I have to tell you something, but you can’t freak out,” Echo said, walking in behind her. With a sigh, Clarke popped her head back up to look at Echo, pleading that this wasn’t going to be what pushed Clarke over. “Apparently, your mother invited Lexa.”

Clarke clenched her eyes shut at the mention of that _name_. No one ever talked about Lexa to Clarke, not anymore. “Does she really think that will work?” Clarke growled, her head dipping down again. Her mother really thought that seeing Lexa would be enough to get Clarke to call off the wedding. Clarke shook her head as she poured herself another glass of champagne. No, Clarke wasn’t going to let this get to her.

“What do you want me to do?”

“Make sure I’m never alone with her,” Clarke huffed as the kitchen door swung open. She forced the smile back on her face as Diana Sydney crept in. Echo offered a fake smile as she stepped back out into the living room.

“Is something wrong?” Diana asked.

“Of course not. Just a little bit of pre-wedding stress,” Clarke said carefully, knowing that anything she said could be turned into another Diana Sydney hatchet job in the press. Although, nothing would make Clarke happier than to give Diana something that will screw her over… but Clarke was too damn exhausted to come up with anything.

“You know, I would love to get a word with your fiancé about the wedding. I think it would really paint a more vivid picture of the whole Griffin-Blake wedding experience,” she smiled, and a small smirk crept onto Clarke’s face. Oh, Diana Sydney was definitely on Bellamy Blake’s list, and he would jump at the opportunity to rip her limb from limb.

“You know, I’m not sure. He’s not really great with talking to press. Always says too much or blurts something out he’s not supposed to,” Clarke deflected, setting her phone on the counter behind her. When she glanced up at Diana, she was nodding frantically in her _most_ understanding face. “I just think it would be best to keep the interviews to us Griffins.”

“Of course,” Diana smiled, and Clarke made her way back into the living room. When she glanced over her shoulder, Diana Sydney was already heading toward the phone Clarke left behind, no doubt to pluck Bellamy’s number from her contacts.

When Clarke spotted Lexa, she was standing beside her mother with a wide grin. Her eyes flashed over to Clarke’s as Clarke walked over to them, forcing the sweetest smile she could possibly muster back onto her face.

“Congratulations,” Lexa said as she extended her arms for a hug. “I can’t believe you’re getting married.”

“Did my mother offer you another check?” Clarke whispered right into her ear as she hugged her back. “I’ll pay you twice what she did if you leave and never come back,” she muttered, her own voice sounding a bit like a growl.

 

She waited until most of the guests had left to slip up the stairs. Today was too much. Her mother’s backhanded comments about Bellamy and Clarke, Lexa showing up and _staying_ , all the gifts she had to open, all the strangers telling her how _lucky_ she was to find love so quickly… _it was too much_.

Maybe she would have been able to ignore these feelings if Lexa hadn’t shown her face. But seeing her reminded Clarke of just how _fucked_ Clarke has always been. Lexa chose money over Clarke. All Clarke’s mother had to do was wave a large enough check in front of Lexa, and it was as if Lexa had never loved Clarke, had never cared for Clarke… and that kind of thing _stays_ with a person. It didn’t help that two of the other people Clarke had found a way to love ended up similarly. Clarke’s mother chose power over Clarke, regardless of what she claimed. She was willing to ruin Clarke’s marriage just to stay in her seat at Griffin Global, she was willing to send Clarke away and make her think she was crazy for _years_ just to protect herself.

Of course, Clarke ended up where she was with _Bellamy_. She learned how to love from two people who would never pick Clarke first. So, it figures Clarke would end up with someone who would choose his plan for revenge over her. And Clarke was _letting him_. Maybe Clarke was too fucked up at this point. Maybe the only way she can love someone is if they hurt her in this uniquely horrendous way. Maybe she really was _broken_.

As soon as her door was shut behind her, she kicked off her shoes and fell to the ground, the tears erupting out of her eyes more viciously than they had in years. She knew it wasn’t fair to beat herself up over what all had happened to her. She had been loved by two people who were genuinely wonderful, her father and Wells. Too bad Thelonious took her father from her and pushed Wells away… leaving Clarke without the only two people that she knew genuinely loved her and would put her first every time. She was _alone_ in this, and she always would be. When the plan for revenge was over, she would never speak to Bellamy again, Echo would take off to complete her mission, and Raven would build a life for herself. But Clarke didn’t know what her future held, all she knew was that she was going to be alone just like she was all those years in boarding school.

She heaved into her floor, before grabbing a pillow off her bed so she could scream into it. She could feel how _broken_ she really was, and it was going to take a long time before she could piece herself back together… if that was even possible at this point.

“Clarke,” she heard her mother shout, and Clarke’s tearstained face popped up. Right, Clarke would have to say goodbye to the last of the guests.

Shakily, she made her way over to her mirror and wiped away where here makeup had smudged. Her eyes weren’t as red as they could be. She took a few deep breaths before slipping her shoes back on. If anyone asks, she could just say she was moved to tears from all the kind words or some kind of bullshit like that.

Luckily, Lexa had left while Clarke was upstairs, meaning Clarke only had to say goodbye to Echo and Harper. As soon as the door was shut behind a worried Echo, Clarke whipped herself around to confront her mother.

“What kind of stunt are you trying to pull?” Clarke shouted as she stormed into the living room.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” her mother replied sweetly as she pushed aside some leftover wrapping paper.

“You are doing everything you possibly can to get me to call off this wedding,” Clarke snapped, and her mother relaxed into the couch, crossing her legs as if this were some casual conversation instead of the battle that it was.

“I’m just trying to save you from the bloodbath that will be you and I fighting over Griffin Global. I’ve been playing this game for decades, Clarke. You won’t win.”

“I wouldn’t bet against me.”

“Here is what will happen: the board will have a meeting over the matter, and all I have to do is provide evidence that you are unfit to take over, and it’s over for you,” she explained, leaning forward. “And you don’t have the advantage. No real business experience outside of your work with The Ark, you’re young, and I know all the skeletons in your closet.”

Clarke couldn’t help but smirk at that last part. Clarke’s skeletons didn’t compare to her mothers. “You forget that last part goes both ways,” Clarke growled.

“You have nothing on me, Clarke. I have a clean record.”

“ _Here_ is what will actually happen: Thelonious has already bought several board members for me, one of which will put forward a vote of no confidence. After all, stock tends to go down when the face of the company’s life is erupted into scandal.”

“There is no scandal, Clarke,” she interrupted in a far too condescending tone for someone whose life was _full_ of scandal.

“So, you’re totally fine if I leak to the press that The City of Light was your personal piggy bank when the government froze your assets during the Mt. Weather investigation?” Clarke asked, dropping that vicious bomb right into her mother’s lap.

“Clarke, you don’t know what you’re talking about,” she snapped.

“Or how about your affair?” Clarke spit out, plopping down in the seat across from her mother. “That wouldn’t go over well considering Griffin Global’s strict morality clause,” she teased, and her mother’s eyes widened before narrowing again.

“You don’t have evidence of me having an affair.”

“Well, the photos I have are from 2003. But I wonder if this was an ongoing affair,” Clarke spat, because this one was a long time coming. “Tell me, did you wait until Dad was cold in the ground before you started screwing Marcus Kane?”

“Clarke, please,” her mother begged, the panic rising in her eyes. Clarke had won this one, no contest. As long as Clarke held that trump card, her mother couldn’t touch her.

“Check mate,” Clarke smirked as she stood up. She could hear her mother chasing after her as she darted toward the stairs.

“I am your mother.”

“And I will ruin you if you try to take another thing from me,” Clarke growled, and she wasn’t talking just about Griffin Global. She meant all of it. Clarke wasn’t about to lose another damn thing because of what _she_ did. She lost her father, she lost Lexa, she lost her family, she lost her childhood, she lost her ability to tell what was real and what wasn’t… Clarke Griffin wasn’t losing another damn thing because of this woman.

 

“I love you so much,” Bellamy murmured as Clarke caught her breath. She could feel his fingers combing through her hair sweetly, and Clarke remembered that this would probably be the last time they would be like this. It wasn’t like the two of them had slept together much lately. Clarke had thrown excuse after excuse at Bellamy to avoid spending too much time with him. But she was so rattled after everything at the bridal shower, and he was just _right there_ and saying all the _right_ things and Clarke just _needed_ to get her mind off everything. “Fuck, I love you,” he whispered before pressing a kiss to the top of her head.

She buried her face back into his chest, trying to ignore the sweet confessions dripping off his lips. It wasn’t like this was real anyway. And Clarke knew that. She just used him for sex. It was nothing. _This_ was nothing. Or at least, that’s what she kept telling herself.

“Do you want to talk about what happened?” Bellamy asked, and Clarke blinked a few times. He probably already knew, she realized. He was watching that whole damn shower. She clenched her eyes shut when she remembered the Marcus Kane bomb she dropped on her mother’s lap. She knew that Bellamy hadn’t known that yet, and she just tossed that information to him.

“When I was in college, I had a girlfriend that I loved a lot,” Clarke sighed, figuring that she needed to at least appear to trust him with this information if she was going to keep up appearances for another few days. “But my mom caught wind of it and paid the girl half a million dollars to leave me. Then, today, she invited her to my wedding shower to make me doubt my decision to marry you.”

“Did it work?” he teased, and Clarke smacked his chest. “Okay, but in all seriousness, did seeing her again upset you?”

She studied his face closely, seeing the genuine concern there. _Oh_ , he would have seen Clarke’s breakdown too… because he was just always watching her on the feeds. “That wasn’t what upset me. I’ve been over the Lexa thing for years. And the girlfriend that came after her,” Clarke blurted out before feeling stupid that she just confessed this had happened twice to her. “It’s that my mother doesn’t care how much she messes with my head if it means she gets what she wants.”

She settled back down on Bellamy’s chest, sensing his eyes raking over her.

“My dad wouldn’t have let her treat me like this,” she blurted out before feeling Bellamy’s lips graze her forehead.

“I’m sorry, Clarke,” Bellamy whispered, tilting her head up to look at him. Clarke didn’t know what to say to him, so she pulled him in for a kiss. The two of them stayed like that for a while, and Clarke let herself enjoy it. After all, this was probably the last time she would ever let Bellamy Blake hold her like this. In less than a week, she would confront him, and the charade would be over. And Clarke could already feel her heart breaking at the idea that she would never feel Bellamy touch her again.

He got up to shower, and Clarke reached over to go through his phone. As she expected, he had a phone call with Diana Sydney. By this time tomorrow, Diana Sydney will have dug her own grave… at least that was something to look forward to.

 

“Griffin Global is all yours,” Echo announced as Clarke popped open another bottle of wine.

“You gonna slow down?” Raven asked, but Clarke was going to keep drinking until the sound of the news covering her family’s most recent blow up was drowned out.

“I’m enjoying my ‘bachelorette party,’” Clarke huffed as she took her glass back toward the couch. She could hear Echo and Raven whispering behind her, but Clarke directed her attention to the two laptop screens on the coffee table. On one, there was the feed of her house, featuring Thelonious and her mother having it out. On the other, there was the feed of Bellamy’s house where he and Octavia were celebrating their victory over Diana Sydney and, of course, the fact that Clarke now was set to become CEO of Griffin Global.

“You know, Wells is getting back in town tomorrow,” Echo said, clearly trying to distract Clarke.

“Great, another witness to my inevitable breakdown next week,” Clarke muttered before taking a large gulp of her wine.

“Will you talk to us?” Raven asked.

“What do I have to talk about?” Clarke slurred, and Echo grabbed the glass from her hand. “Should I talk about the fact that the people who raised me killed all those people in Mt. Weather? Or should I talk about the fact that the man I love is using me to get revenge on them?”

“Clarke.”

“While we are at it,” Clarke grumbled, sitting up straighter, “why don’t we talk about the fact that I had to do shit just as bad as they’re doing just to stay a step ahead? I’ve blackmailed people, I’ve threatened people, I’m spying on Bellamy and my family, I’ve had Raven hack for vital information…”

“We did what we had to do. They used you, so we used them,” Echo clarified, slamming both the laptops shut so Clarke couldn’t see them anymore. “And keep in mind that you agreed to all of this.”

“Do you think I don’t fucking know that?” Clarke shouted, her eyes threatening tears as the words came out. Of course, Clarke knew she agreed to this. She agreed to let Bellamy use her, which meant she fucking agreed to all the pain that came with it. She had no one to blame but herself for the rotten feeling she has inside her now.

“None of this is your fault,” Raven said, and whatever restraint Clarke had on her tear ducts went out the window as she turned to heave into Raven’s shirt.

 

Somehow, Clarke managed to get through the rehearsal dinner. It helped that Thelonious was being an ass the entire time. That distracted her from the way Bellamy was all over her. It also helped that she was distracted by Dax’s _odd_ demeanor. To be honest, Clarke had never paid much attention to Dax. She knew that he had been spying on Bellamy for her mother’s sake and had done some work to help cover up Thelonious’ messes, but she did her best to stay out of his way because he gave her the creeps. She knew she wasn’t reading into anything because Bellamy said something… which he would not have done unless he was actually concerned. It took all the power within Clarke not to confront her mother for paying Dax to trail Bellamy again.

Clarke stayed over at Echo’s that night, not wanting to be anywhere near her mother on the morning of her wedding. She picked up the watch that she bought for Bellamy, glancing at where Raven had installed the tracking device. It was subtle… or subtle enough. If Bellamy ever caught wind of what Clarke was up to, he’d be able to figure it out.

Although, if their most recent phone call was any indication, he was under the impression that Clarke was completely oblivious to all his scheming… which was probably for the best.

“We’re calling the cops,” she heard Octavia mutter on the feed in front of her, but Clarke could hardly see them in the dark of his house.

“That’s not necessary. Look, Abby is just looking for some dirt to provoke Clarke into calling off the wedding. Let him stalk me. That’ll just prove that I’m not up to anything,” Bellamy snapped, and an anger began unfurling in Clarke’s stomach. _Dax_ was there… and her mother was _still_ trying to sabotage Clarke’s wedding that was supposed to happen tomorrow.

“I mean, you are up to something,” Octavia corrected, and a snort escaped Clarke as she leaned back on the couch.

“And if this were months ago, they would find me doing some shady shit. But, I’m not currently acting suspicious.”

There was a silence after that as the two of them started talking toward the hallway, where there was actual lighting, thank God. “Are you going to be able to go through with this?” Octavia asked.

“Of course,” Bellamy snapped coldly as he kept walking, and Clarke shuddered at his tone. “Look, the damage is done either way. There’s no point in turning back now.”

“Bell.”

“I was never supposed to have this,” Bellamy practically shouted, and Clarke slid the laptop even closer to her as she tried to make sense of the strange face Bellamy was making. “I’m sorry. It’s just, I never expected to get married or to have all these people welcome me into their family, regardless of how fucked up they all are. But my feelings in this are irrelevant,” he explained, his voice breaking on the word _irrelevant_. He took a breath, putting himself back together, but Clarke’s heart didn’t stop pounding. “So, the plan will stay on course,” he decided with a slight twitch on his lips. She could see how much he _hated_ doing this, and she wanted to scream at him that it wasn’t too late to change course.

She blinked a few times at that thought, realizing that it really wasn’t too late. If Bellamy changed his mind, Clarke could forgive him. If he could just choose her instead of using her… _they could be okay_.

“Your feelings aren’t irrelevant, Bellamy. I don’t know if I would be strong enough to do what you’re doing,” Octavia said on the screen, and Clarke threw her head back and stifled a sob.

“To break someone’s heart?”

“To sacrifice what you have for the greater good,” Octavia snapped.

“There had to have been another way,” was the last thing out of Bellamy’s mouth before he slammed his bedroom door shut.

Clarke closed her laptop quietly, letting a few of her tears fall as she thought over what she just saw. She could see how _miserable_ this decision was making Bellamy… and the weaker part of her let herself hope that it was because he really did love her. After all, the two of them had too many _real_ moments that couldn’t have been faked. He couldn’t fake that reaction to her abduction, that night in her bedroom after she was taken couldn’t have been fake… he loved her, she was fairly certain of it.

… she just didn’t know if he loved her enough.

“Whatever you’re thinking, no,” Echo snapped, standing in her bedroom doorway and raising an eyebrow at her. Clarke swallowed, not knowing how long Echo had been standing there.

“He could still change his mind,” Clarke murmured, and Echo’s face fell.

“He won’t. He made his choice,” Echo whispered sympathetically. Clarke threw her head back, those words echoing in her ears. But maybe if Clarke offered him a different choice, he would take it. Maybe he cared about her enough to try. _Maybe Bellamy would be different_.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WEDDING CHAPTER NEXT FEATURING A HOT BITCH SLAP THAT WAS ABOUT TEN CHAPTERS IN THE MAKING


	11. Arrangement

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WEDDING CHAPTER AND BITCH SLAP CHAPTER HOPE YOU GUYS ARE READY FOR IT

Clarke turned around in front of the mirror, eyeing the back of her dress carefully. “It wasn’t this tight yesterday,” Clarke muttered. In fact, it was hard to even breathe in the thing.

“The _dress_ is not the problem,” Raven said quietly, and Clarke’s eyes fluttered shut. Right, _Clarke_ was the problem right now. Her dress wasn’t tight, she was just panicking in this tiny, claustrophobic room. She stepped away from the mirror to grab a glass of water, her hand shaking as she picked up the glass.

“Clarke, are you okay?” Octavia asked sweetly, and Clarke nodded as she gulped down the water.

“Just nerves. Brides get like this on their wedding day,” Echo explained, and Clarke let out a sigh of relief. She wasn’t sure how much longer she could keep this charade up while her panic was seizing every inch of her body.

Raven said something about needing the check on the flowers and excused herself, and Clarke kept her eyes fixed on the mirror in front of her. She looked perfect. She is dressed like the damn princess of Arkadia she had always appeared to be, looked exactly like what she was supposed to look like on the day that she married the “love of her life.”

“Octavia, will you go get Bellamy?” Clarke asked breathlessly.

“That’s bad luck,” Echo snapped, and Clarke’s head popped up to glare at her. Clarke didn’t need to remind her just how _little_ Clarke cared for the marriage superstitions at this point, she and Bellamy were already fucked, after all. Echo just didn’t want Clarke doing anything to jeopardize the plan before Clarke was officially married.

“I need to talk to Bellamy,” she replied as calmly as she could, and Octavia didn’t hesitate to jump out of the room. As soon as the door was shut, Clarke said, “I’m going to test him.”

“You have already tested him,” Echo growled, crossing her arms.

“Then, just one more,” Clarke huffed.

“Have you forgotten just how—”

“I am not asking you for permission, Echo,” Clarke snapped, and Echo jumped at her tone. “I am testing him because even if he fails, maybe it’ll help me sleep at night, okay?”

Clarke could feel the tears fighting their way out as Echo pulled her in for a quick hug before stepping out of the room. Clarke paced for a few minutes, nearly jumping when she heard Bellamy’s soft knock on the door.

“Clarke, it’s me,” he said, and Clarke sucked in a deep breath as she opened the door. Bellamy clenched his eyes shut, and Clarke let out a huff of annoyance as she pulled him in.

“Bell, what are you doing?” she groaned. She gave him a once over, seeing him perfectly made up in the tux she had picked out. His hair wasn’t as messy as it normally was, which she kind of missed.

“Bad luck to see the bride before the wedding. Are we alone?”

“Yes,” she sighed, closing the door. She picked up her dress as she maneuvered her way around him so she could stand right in front of him. “Bell, please look at me,” she pleaded as she pulled his hands down.

“Clarke, I—” he tried to interrupt before his eyes met hers. His eyes softened in that way they always did when Clarke was upset, and she tried to ignore the pang in her chest at the sight. She bit down on her lip, breaking her eyes away from his loving gaze. “Clarke,” he whispered, and his hand cupped her cheek. He tilted her head up so she would look at him as he stepped closer to her. “What’s wrong?”

“This just happened so fast. We only just met. What are we doing, Bell?” she asked, and those words were all it took to get her eyes to give in completely. She might be testing him, but the panic she felt was undeniably real.

“Hey, everything is okay,” he reassured as he wiped away a few of her tears, and Clarke’s thoughts drifted back to all the different times he held her like this with that sincere look in his eyes. “Yeah, this happened quicker than either of us expected,” he conceded. “But I love you and you love me. And that’s all that really matters.”

Clarke sucked in a shaky breath, and she wanted to scream at him to realize what Clarke was really asking him to do. If he could just prove to her that this was real for him, she’d give in in a heartbeat. She’d marry him and be in his arms tonight and help him take down everyone. He just had to choose _Clarke_ first.

“It’s not just that. The whole wedding doesn’t even feel like us,” Clarke murmured, Bellamy’s fingers still wiping away her tears as she spoke. Her eyes flickered back up to his, silently praying that he would do the right thing this time. “You know, we could just take off right now. Go somewhere just the two of us, leave all this Arkadian nonsense behind us,” she explained, now taking his hands in hers.

His eyes narrowed at her, and she could see a bit of hesitation in his dark eyes… enough to give Clarke hope that he could do this, that he could be the person she wanted him to be. “Clarke, you don’t mean that. Your life is here, your family is here,” he stuttered out, and Clarke could feel her own lips betraying her as they tilted up into a smile. _He was wavering_.

“No, I do,” she reassured, her grin growing bigger by the second. “Wells is the only family I care about anyways, and he’d visit us wherever we go. If we left now, we could be getting married in Italy by tomorrow morning, just the two of us. No press, no Thelonious or my mom… just you and me.”

She watched his eyes carefully as he argued with himself, and she tightened her grip on his hands. He could do this. He could choose her. She loved him, and she was certain he loved her just as much… he _had_ to choose her.

“Clarke, this is how it’s meant to be,” he finally whispered, and Clarke dropped his hands and her jaw went slack. “Ignore your parents… I could care less about them being here. But there are a lot of people here who love you and want to see us get married. Wells, Echo, Harper… even Marcus,” he explained in a very rehearsed manner. This was probably something Marcus had prepared him for. _This was probably something Bellamy had prepared for months for_. “And my loved ones are here too. Things aren’t easy here, sure. But don’t you want to start our lives surrounded by the people who love us?”

 _No,_ she wanted to scream. She wanted to start their lives by marrying the man who _actually_ loved her, not this puppet of Marcus Kane who was only using her to get revenge.

His eyes were boring into hers, waiting for her response… probably terrified that Clarke was about to bolt. And fuck, she wanted to run far away and never _think_ about Bellamy Blake again after this.

“Okay,” she said quietly.

“Hey,” Bellamy whispered as he tilted her head up to look at him, and all she wanted to do was slap him right across the face. “Everything is going to be fine,” he reassured before kissing her. God, Clarke hated when he lied to her.

 

“Hands over your head, Clarke,” Echo whispered, as Clarke sucked in another shaky breath. Her eyes flickered up to the clock on the wall, realizing just how late she was for her own wedding.

“Maybe some more water would help,” Raven suggested, but Clarke just shook her head. Then, the dressing room door jerked open and her mother appeared.

“Clarke, sweetie, what’s going on?” she asked as she rushed over to her.

“She’s fine. Just cold feet,” Raven explained, and Clarke clenched her eyes shut because that was the _last_ thing her mother needed to hear in order to refuel her campaign to get this wedding called off.

“Hey,” she said, her hand now cupping Clarke’s face. “There is nothing wrong with cold feet. If you are freaking out like this, there is probably a reason.” Clarke gestured for Echo and Raven to step out, and they hesitantly made their way to the door before shutting it quietly behind them.

“I’m fine,” Clarke managed to stutter out, but her mother wasn’t convinced.

“You really aren’t, sweetie. If this was the right decision, you would be much calmer about it. I was calm the day I married your father,” she said, and Clarke winced at the mention of her father.

“Were you calm the day you married the man who killed him?” Clarke spat, and her mother jumped back.

“I’m going to let that one slide because you are under a lot of stress, but we need to get you in to see someone about this paranoia of yours,” she snapped back, and Clarke’s jaw tensed.

“Get out,” Clarke growled.

“Clarke.”

“I said get out. I will talk to you after my wedding,” she spat, gesturing toward the door. After a few beats, her mother stepped out.

As soon as Clarke was alone, she braced her hands on the dresser beside her and caught her breath. After a few minutes, Echo and Raven crept back in. After taking one more breath, Clarke turned back around.

“Which one of you is helping me with the veil?” Clarke huffed, and Raven and Echo exchanged a nervous look.

“What is going on?” Echo asked slowly, narrowing her eyes at Clarke.

Clarke rubbed the last of her tears from her eyes. “Just remembered why I was doing this. Grab the veil.”

 

“You sure you’re okay?” Wells asked right before the door opened.

“Of course,” Clarke lied, keeping her eyes fixed on Bellamy at the end of the aisle. “I’ve been waiting a long time for this moment.”

She could feel the weight of all those eyes on her as she made her way toward Bellamy. She was fine until about halfway through when she gripped onto Wells a little bit too hard.

“You sure about this?” Wells whispered as he leaned in to kiss Clarke’s cheek, and she nodded a subtly as she could.

When Bellamy took her hands, Clarke realized her own hands were shaking. She could feel Bellamy’s panicked eyes still on her, probably terrified that she was about to bail on this wedding. After all, that would really fuck up his precious _plan_.

She tuned in and out during the service, only registering what was happening when it was time for Bellamy to start his vows. She listened carefully as he promised to respect her and care for her and love her… and all she wanted to do was slap him across the face for lying to her so convincingly.

“I, Clarke Griffin, take you, Bellamy Blake, to be my husband,” she said as convincingly as she could, “to respect you in your successes and your failures, to care for you in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish; from this day forward until death do us part.”

For a moment, while he was putting the ring on Clarke’s finger, she could see the guilt behind his eyes again. And for a moment, she felt bad for him… until she remembered all the _hell_ he had put her through to get her here beside him.

When it was time for the kiss, Clarke let her eyes shut as Bellamy cupped her cheeks. _This was the last time she would ever let him do that_.

 

“Mind if I cut in?” she heard Thelonious say, and Clarke let out a sigh of relief. She was so exhausted from having to be constantly at Bellamy’s side all night, cringing every time his arm wrapped around her waist. She could use a damn break, even if it was only to dance with Thelonious Jaha.

“Enjoying the party?” Clarke asked as soon as Thelonious took her hand, watching over his shoulder as Bellamy walked off the dance floor.

“Yes, it’s been great. I really needed a fun night to blow off some steam before my workload jumped up next week,” he replied, and Clarke furrowed her brows in confusion. The Ark really wasn’t going to have a busy week given the time of year, so she wasn’t sure what Thelonious was talking about.

“I know the feeling,” Clarke replied, referencing that starting next week, she could take Griffin Global finally.

“Oh, you have a lot to learn about Griffin Global,” he said ominously, and Clarke jerked her head back to look at him more closely. He was up to something… which she probably should have seen coming. This was Thelonious Jaha, after all. He was always up to something. “For instance, did you know that my father was its original investor?”

Clarke blinked a few times, trying to process those words. It made sense. Thelonious and her dad were close, and his father would have had the capital to invest in her dad’s vision all those years ago. Then, it struck her. “Did he invest out of his own personal checkbook or from The Ark’s?” she asked, the panic rising in her voice.

“The Ark’s,” he smirked, and Clarke’s stomach dropped. Her eyes darted over to Marcus Kane who was talking to Bellamy, and the anger started to flood back into her body. For the past month, Clarke had taken her eye off Thelonious… assuming that _they_ would be watching out for this kind of thing while Clarke was fighting tooth and nail to get the CEO position. But they didn’t see it coming either… and Clarke couldn’t wait to punch Marcus Kane in the nose for this. “CEO doesn’t really mean the same thing when your company is a subsidiary of another. But at least you get to keep the title,” Thelonious teased, and Clarke broke away from him. “Don’t make a scene, Clarke,” he snapped, and she narrowed her eyes at him.

In a huff, she broke away to exit the dance floor, but Thelonious grabbed her wrist to pull her back. “This is what happens when you try and threaten me, Clarke,” he growled into her ear, and Clarke’s jaw clenched. “Take the hint that your father never did.”

 

“And I need the feeds turned off tomorrow morning when I go back to the house,” Clarke huffed, as Echo unlaced the back of her dress.

“Consider it done. But are you sure that’s a great idea?” Raven asked. Clarke bit her lip, remembering what Indra had told her on the phone just a few minutes ago.

“I can keep this in a legal battle for a while, maybe even win. The Ark’s claim on Griffin Global is sketchy at best,” Clarke huffed, before stepping out of that damn princess dress. She crossed over to the table to grab her jeans and t-shirt, thankful that she didn’t have to be in that damn dress for another second.

“Clarke, are _you_ okay?” Echo asked, and Clarke threw her head back.

“No, I’m not fucking okay,” Clarke snapped. “I just married Bellamy with the expectation that he was looking out for this kind of shit. So, not only did he use me for his plan, but he also wasn’t very good at it!”

“To be fair, we should have been watching Jaha too,” Raven sighed.

“No, we had our hands full keeping an eye on those idiots working for Kane and trying to get me the board of Griffin Global. We had _our_ job and we did it well. This is their fuck up,” Clarke spat as she tugged on her jeans. All she wanted to do was punch something… or someone. _All of this was for nothing_. “And now, I get to go enjoy my wedding night with a man I want to hit with my car.”

“Then, hit him with your car,” Echo smirked, and Clarke pulled on her t-shirt.

“Don’t think I’m not thinking about it,” Clarke muttered. In fact, hitting Bellamy with a car sounded really damn good right now.

“Okay, let’s not spend our wedding night committing vehicular manslaughter,” Raven snapped.

“It won’t get deemed vehicular manslaughter if they never find the body,” Echo snorted, and Clarke bit down on her lip. She knew Echo was joking… but she also knew that Echo could get rid of the body quickly and would be completely down to take Bellamy out given how much she hates him.

“We are not killing my husband,” Clarke reminded… just to be safe. Clarke would deal with Bellamy… just not like that.

She heard her phone ding from the dresser and a groan escaped her lips. She crossed over to see the GPS app going off. “Where the fuck is Bellamy going?” she muttered, watching his car start to deviate away from the route to his house. It also wasn’t going in the direction of his office, of Monty and Jasper’s apartment, of Octavia’s place… which meant he was up to something tonight.

“Give me your phone. I’ll follow him,” Echo sighed.

“Nope. My husband, my problem. Can I take your car so he doesn’t see me trailing him?” Clarke asked, and Echo started fishing her keys out of her purse.

Clarke grabbed her back, double checking that her gun was still in there from when she packed it this morning. She prayed she didn’t have to use it… but Bellamy’s tracker kept drifting closer and closer to the shadiest part of town.

“This dumb fuck is going to get himself killed,” Clarke groaned as she snatched the keys from Echo’s hand. “I’ll text you with updates or if I need help burying a body.”

 

When Clarke spotted his car at some abandoned warehouse, whatever anger she felt went out the window because this couldn’t be good. She closed the car door quietly, keeping her grip tightly on her gun as she tiptoed across the parking lot.

She touched the hood of Bellamy’s car when she passed it, sighing with relief that it was still warm. He hadn’t been here long.

The lights were on when she stepped inside the warehouse, but all she could hear was strangled breathing. Throwing caution to the wind, Clarke ran further in, spotting Bellamy in a physical struggle with… _Dax_.

“You just don’t want to die, do you?” Dax growled, pushing down harder on Bellamy’s throat. He was strangling him to death.

It took Clarke all of two seconds to line up her shot and slam a bullet right through Dax’s skull. She felt her shoulders relax as soon as she heard Bellamy’s desperate gasp for air… she wasn’t too late. She tucked her gun away as she ran over to him.

Bellamy shakily pushed himself to sit up, his eyes shifting over to Dax beside him. Clarke watched him carefully as he figured out what had happened, and her eyes drifted down to the red marks staining his neck. She could feel her whole body start to shake at the realization that he almost _died_. Her Bellamy almost died tonight, alone in some abandoned warehouse. If she hadn’t have tracked his watch, he would be dead right now and she’d probably never find out what happened to him.

Bellamy’s eyes fluttered back open as Clarke knelt down beside him. She tilted his chin up so she could get a better look at his neck, praying that it would all just bruise. “Clarke,” he whispered, and Clarke never thought she would be so relieved to hear him speak.

“Are you breathing alright?” she checked, seeing nothing else apparently wrong with him, thank God.

“Yeah, I’m fine.”

Her eyes jerked up to meet his, realizing that he was probably really freaked out about his almost death. “Do you feel yourself panicking?” she asked. She could talk him down from a panic attack… she had been through enough just _today_. She could calm him down.

“No, I’m fine. My breathing is under control now,” he explained.

“You sure? It’s okay if you’re in shock.”

Then, he grabbed her hand. “Clarke, I’m fine. Thanks to you,” he said with a weak smile, and Clarke jerked her hand away before she got sucked back into his lies.

“That’s good,” she muttered, forcing her eyes away from Bellamy.  He might have almost died, but that didn’t change a damn thing he did today or the fact that all of it was for _nothing_. She could feel the fury seep back into her as his eyes bored into her.

When she looked back at him, he was giving her that _loving_ look… one that she was quickly learning to hate. Now that she knew he was okay, it didn’t matter that he almost died. He was still the same man who lied to her. He was still the same man who let Clarke’s private therapy sessions go viral. He was still the man whose recklessness led to Clarke getting abducted by Cage. He was still the same man who was willing to rip her heart out if it meant getting revenge for his mother’s death.

As soon as Clarke’s palm ripped across Bellamy’s face in a vicious smack, she could feel months’ worth of aggression and anger pouring out of her.

She watched with interest as Bellamy rubbed his cheek frantically, his eyes widening as he searched Clarke’s face for an explanation. And she loved the look of panic in his eyes as he realized the truth… that Clarke _knew_ , that Clarke had known, that she was playing him too.

He opened his mouth, a question on his lips, but Clarke pushed herself up. He didn’t get to ask her a damn thing. In fact, she didn’t want to hear him speak. He had done enough.

“Head or feet?” she snapped, raising an eyebrow at him. She tried not to be amused at the dumbfounded expression on his face, but it felt so good to see him feeling so stupid.

“Clarke,” he whispered, and Clarke moved over toward Dax. This was going to be a bitch to clean up… but Echo could help.

“What?” Clarke snapped.

“Look, I need to explain—”

“Bellamy, head or feet? I’m not going to ask you again,” she growled. There was a damn body to deal with. This was no time for his weak apologies and lies.

She tried not to laugh at the thought of spending their wedding night burying a body together… but it seemed so damn appropriate for them.

“We have a body we need to deal with, Bellamy,” she said with as much condescension as she could muster. After all, she knew Bellamy had done far worse than this. He shouldn’t be so rattled when Clarke was staying so calm. “So, do you want to carry the head or the feet?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> and with that, I have officially posted one million words on ao3 good god i'm gonna go sleep now


	12. Confrontation

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Get ready for some angry angry Clarke. Honestly, Bellamy is just lucky that she didn't smack him with the shovel (like Emily did to Aiden on the actual show Revenge).

“Clarke, why are there two shovels in your car?” Bellamy shouted, a bit too loud. At least there wasn’t anyone nearby to hear him.

Clarke slammed the trunk shut, enjoying the loud clang as she did. She was trying to refrain from punching Bellamy in the face, so these little moments of catharsis were quite necessary. “This isn’t my car,” she smirked as she made her way toward the front seat.

“That does not answer my question, Clarke!” Bellamy yelled as he jogged up to the other side of the car and got in. She kept her focus on starting the car, reminding herself that she was in for a long night with Bellamy and she needed to keep a level head if they were going to dispose of the body properly. “Were you planning on burying a body tonight?”

Clarke desperately wanted to say that she had thought about it but threatening him probably wasn’t her smartest move when Echo was still at least fifteen minutes away. “Like I said, this isn’t my car,” she muttered as she pulled out of her parking spot.

“Whose car is this?”

“Echo’s.”

“Why the fuck does Echo have two shovels in her trunk?” he growled, and Clarke had to fight not to laugh at how panicked he was. It was nice seeing him rattled like this, having his stupid plan turned up on its head. He had no idea that Clarke _knew_ , and he certainly had no idea what kind of person Echo was.

“Maybe she’s into gardening. I don’t know,” she teased, and he started groaning.

“People don’t just keep shovels in their trunk. That’s shady.” Because apparently bugging someone’s house, keeping secret files buried in a closet, and having someone hack into private databases didn’t make Bellamy shady.

“I don’t interrogate you about what you keep in your car,” she smirked, and she could feel Bellamy’s wide eyes on her.

“I don’t have shovels in my car.”

“No, you have those educational Spanish CD’s buried in your glove box underneath an empty box of Oreos.”

“That’s not as shady as having shovels in the trunk, Clarke,” he snapped in frustration, clearly hating that for once, Clarke held all the cards.

“Well, you could be planning to hide out in Medico after you’re finished with your business here,” she teased. Although, if he did plan something like that, Clarke was just angry enough to hunt him down.

“I’m not running off to Mexico!” he shouted.

“Obviously not,” she smirked, loving how easy it was to get a rise out of him. “You still don’t speak Spanish.”

“Clarke!”

“Yes, _dear_?” she spat, as she pulled off onto a dirt road, leading her to where Echo said she took bodies to bury them.

“Where are we going?”

“We’ve got to get rid of Dax somewhere,” she mumbled as she swerved into park. She shot him a glance as she undid her seatbelt, noticing a nervous side of him that she wasn’t used to. For a moment, she wanted to ask if he was okay… but just for a moment. Because then she remembered exactly _who_ he was and reminded herself that she didn’t give a shit if he was _okay_.

She hopped out of the car, popping open the trunk quickly. She looked up, seeing that Bellamy still hadn’t gotten out. “Get out of the car!” she shouted, wishing that she could have just waited for Echo to show up so that she could get rid of the body with her instead. She tossed one of the shovels to the ground at Bellamy’s feet once he made his way toward her.

For a moment, she thought he would say something. Luckily, he didn’t say a damn thing as she brushed past him. The two of them dug in silence, and it was taking all the energy within her to not just start screaming at him for everything.

Her mind started flashing to when Cage kidnapped her, to how Clarke really thought she was going to die there. She remembered that bullet lodging itself in Cage, a familiar sight to Clarke shooting Dax less than an hour ago. The gunshot was still ringing in her ears. The only sound more vivid was the sound of Bellamy gasping for breath as soon as Dax was shot… and Clarke was certain she had never felt relief quite like that before.

She swallowed, trying to focus on digging instead of her complicated feelings toward Bellamy. She couldn’t let herself get caught up in thinking about what would have happened if she lost him. If she did, she’d want to forgive him and to love him, and she just couldn’t fucking do that. Not after everything he had done. Not after she gave him chance after chance to choose her and he _never_ did.

“Clarke, talk to me,” he said suddenly, but she refused to look up at him. She knew that if she even looked at him right now she might snap.

“What about?”

“About what happened tonight,” he said as if it were the easiest thing in the world to talk about. But instead, Clarke was bombarded with flashes of Dax’s hands around Bellamy’s throat.

“He wanted you dead,” she snapped as she looked back up at him, trying to reassure herself that Bellamy was still here. “I prefer you alive.” Her eyes were practically begging him to stop talking to her. She wasn’t ready to talk to him. She doubted she ever would be. She just wanted to get through tonight.

“Clarke, please.”

“Did you think I was stupid?” she blurted out, forcing a smile on her face to keep from screaming at him. “You did, didn’t you?”

“Of course not,” Bellamy whispered as he took a step toward her. She narrowed her eyes at him, gripping onto the shovel a bit tighter. He stopped moving, clearly seeing that Clarke might hurt him if he got any closer.

“Keep digging,” she growled, gesturing to his shovel on the ground. They didn’t have time to take breaks, and she didn’t want to be stuck with him any longer than she had to. “Did you really think I wouldn’t look into you? That the adopted son of Marcus Kane who set his sights on me wouldn’t set off any alarms in my head?” she snapped.

How could he be so naïve? Or did Clarke really come off as clueless? She had left signs at every turn that she knew. He could have asked her something that would have revealed what all she knew.

Bellamy’s face was pensive as he studied her face, working through what she just shouted at him. “You had Alie look into me, didn’t you?”

She blinked a few times before remembering that Bellamy still thought A.L.I.E. was Becca. Right, this was another one of those things Bellamy had been too stupid to figure out. “Yes, I used A.L.I.E. to find information on you. And I learned quite a bit,” she huffed as she plunged the shovel back into the dirt. “I didn’t need to use A.L.I.E. to tell me you were Aurora Blake’s son, though.”

Bellamy’s head jerked up at the mention of his mother’s name with a slight panic in his eyes. “What else do you know about me?” he whispered.

“That as a teenager you burned down one of your foster homes, which with the abuse allegations that followed was justified,” she huffed. “That Marcus technically only adopted Octavia, which I assume was because you couldn’t get custody of her with your record once you turned eighteen. That your mother’s alleged suicide was on the same day of my dad’s alleged car wreck.”

Bellamy stopped digging to look up at her, his eyes widening at those words. “You know it wasn’t a suicide?” he asked with a hint of a smile on his lips. Bellamy was probably relieved to hear that someone else knew the truth.

“I suspected. Now, I know,” she murmured. The two of them fell back into silence, which Clarke was grateful for.

“This is deep enough,” she decided, dropping the shovel to the ground as she headed toward her car. She could hear his footsteps behind her as she approached the trunk.

Clarke got to work grabbing Dax’s arms, when Bellamy asked, “How did you find me?”

“Not important,” she muttered as Bellamy grabbed his feet.

“I know you didn’t leave that note for me,” he said breathlessly as they started carrying Dax toward the grave they just dug. “So, how did you know I’d be at the warehouse?” Clarke’s jaw clenched. She was not about to reveal to him that she was tracking him. She needed him to keep wearing that watch so that she could find him in case he tried to do anything stupid like this again. “Clarke, you owe me an explanation.”

Clarke dropped Dax immediately, her furious eyes meeting Bellamy’s as he put Dax’s feet down. What the hell did he mean she owed him an explanation? No, he was the one who owed Clarke an explanation. He used her _first_. “I don’t owe you anything,” she growled, and Bellamy’s eyes widened.

“Clarke, that’s not what I—”

“You leaked my private therapy sessions for anyone to see,” she interrupted, stepping around Dax’s body to stalk toward Bellamy. “You’ve spied on me,” she spat, and Bellamy took a step backwards. “What you pulled with Wallace got me kidnapped.”

“I didn’t realize that Cage would react like that,” Bellamy stuttered out quickly, tripping as he took another step backwards.

“Oh, well that makes it all better!” she yelled. “And let’s not forget how much you’ve lied to me. You used me, you manipulated me, and you let me start to believe this was real. So, shut up,” she spat, her heart racing as she spoke, “and help me throw Dax into the grave.”

She turned around quickly, trying to shake off the rage that was taking over her. “I am so sorry, Clarke,” he pleaded.

“I said shut up,” she yelled, grabbing Dax’s arms. When she looked up at Bellamy, he looked rattled. But he didn’t say anything else. He helped her throw Dax into the grave, and the two of them filled the hole in complete and utter silence.

“Where are we going now?” Bellamy asked, following after Clarke as she threw the shovels back into Echo’s trunk.

“Back to the warehouse. You need to get your car,” she muttered before slamming the trunk shut. She pulled out her phone, finding a series of check in texts from Echo who was back at the warehouse waiting for her. Apparently, Raven was having a hard time figuring out who sent Dax to kill Bellamy. “Bellamy, who all has motive to kill you?”

“It’s a long list,” he muttered, and she narrowed her eyes at him as she tucked her phone back into her pocket.

“How did Dax lure you out to the warehouse?”

“Uh, he left me this note,” Bellamy muttered, fishing it out of his back pocket before handing it over to Clarke.

 _I saw your face when you got the news about Griffin Global. I have the evidence you’re looking for_.

Clarke swallowed as she looked over the instructions, already making a list of who could have possibly known about what Thelonious was going to pull tonight. “But I’m pretty sure your mother sent him.”

“No,” Clarke muttered. “Neither she nor Thelonious suspects you to be anything but an opportunist,” she said, glaring at Bellamy as she handed the note back to him. “Besides, if my mother wanted you dead, she would have had him kill you before the wedding. And if Thelonious did, I wouldn’t have found you alive.”

She ignored the scared look on Bellamy’s face, reminding herself that it wasn’t her job to reassure him. He wasn’t anything to her, or at least he shouldn’t be. He was just the man who used her. She jumped back into the driver’s seat, barely registering Bellamy getting in the car beside her. “Dax works for your parents. Why would he kill me if they didn’t order him to?”

“I’m working on that. But my family doesn’t exactly attract honest or loyal people,” she muttered, as she pulled the car in reverse. “He could have easily been bought by someone else. Hence why I want to know who all would want you dead.”

“Uh, Charles Pike, Dante Wallace, probably Diana Sydney…”

“Wallace still thinks that was all Thelonious, and Diana is too stupid to realize what you pulled with that phone call,” she muttered.

“Wait, how do you know about that phone call?” he asked nervously, clearly on edge about how many things he didn’t know about his wife.

“I was testing a theory when I let her steal your number from my contacts. And I couldn’t have planned for a better blow-up myself,” she smirked. “However, you didn’t really finish the job with Charles Pike, did you?”

If anyone were to try to take out Bellamy, it would have to be Pike. He was the only one on the list who wasn’t in jail, dead, or an idiot. He could have figured out it was Bellamy easily, and it wasn’t like Bellamy was great at staying on top of everything. Too many things had slipped through the cracks.

“Uh, I think I did a decent job with him,” he snapped defensively.

“You bankrupted him and ruined his career. I hardly think that’s fair punishment for profiting off the deaths of 382 people.”

“And now his wife is leaving him and his kids have cut off contact. He has nothing,” he growled.

“He has freedom,” she snapped. “More importantly, he has the time and resources to figure out exactly how his life fell apart, you dumbass.” God, no wonder Bellamy didn’t figure out what Thelonious was up to. He couldn’t even keep track of his very first mark.

“Are you saying that Charles Pike tried to have me killed?”

“I’m saying he could have. Or someone else you’ve pissed off. Anyone else you’ve tried to manipulate into marrying you lately?” she growled.

“Clarke, I’m sorry!” he shouted.

“What am I supposed to do with that apology?” she screamed, slapping her steering wheel to keep from slapping Bellamy. She jerked the car into the warehouse parking lot, cursing Bellamy’s name in her mind as she did.

“Clarke, there’s someone here,” Bellamy whispered, his hand already moving toward his gun.

“Don’t worry about it,” she muttered. It was just Echo. After Clarke parked, she hopped out of the car to head toward Echo. She had a concerned look on her face, meaning she didn’t have good news for her.

“What is going on?” Bellamy asked, and Clarke rolled her eyes as she handed Echo her car keys back.

“Ignore him,” Clarke muttered, already pulling Dax’s phone and wallet out of her pocket.

“We couldn’t get anything on that phone number,” Echo said.

“Fuck,” she snapped. But now, she was pretty certain that number belonged to Charles Pike.

“Eh, worst case scenario, you end up a widow,” Echo teased, glancing over at Bellamy with a vicious look in her eyes.

“I am right here!” Bellamy growled. “What the hell is Echo doing here?”

“He really isn’t that bright, is he?” Echo joked, and Clarke could feel Bellamy fuming beside her. He wasn’t used to not being in control, which meant this entire night was his worst nightmare.

“Well, he still can’t figure out how I found him,” Clarke shrugged as she walked over to her car door. Then, she remembered that she wasn’t going _home_. She was going over to her husband’s house. “I’ll meet you at home, dear,” she spat out, shuddering at the words coming out of her own mouth.

 

“We need to figure out what to do about Dax. Your family is going to notice when he stops showing up for work,” Raven said, and Clarke bit her lip.

“Frame Charles Pike for it,” Clarke decided, and Raven’s eyes jerked up to look at her. “He’s the only person on the list who didn’t get punished enough. This puts him behind bars.” Not to mention it would prevent Pike from ever trying something like this again. She knew that Pike would try to kill Bellamy again once he learned that his plan failed. She knew it had to be Pike. He would have been around Griffin Global long enough to know about its potential to become a subsidiary of The Ark. He was the only person she could think of who would know to put that in the note to Bellamy. And he had so much motive to kill Bellamy.

“You were pissed when we framed Becca,” Raven snapped, and Clarke’s jaw clenched.

“Well, you guys were right to frame her. Let’s do it again,” Clarke decided.

Raven got to work looking into Pike, and Clarke shot Echo a quick text about the change of plan.

Clarke wasn’t ready to leave the apartment just yet. She didn’t want to go home to Bellamy. She knew she wasn’t going to sleep tonight. But there was nothing for her to _do_ here. Raven already dealt with the feeds for tomorrow, meaning Clarke could have privacy during her confrontation with Thelonious. Echo was fast at work figuring out how to frame Pike for Dax’s murder while Raven worked on creating motive.

So, she made her way back to Bellamy’s house, praying that somehow, he just went right to sleep when he got home. But no. He was waiting for her.

“Where the hell have you been?” he shouted.

“No comment,” Clarke snapped, slamming the door shut behind her.

“I need to know where you were,” he said with gritted teeth.

“Well, if the police officers ever show up at our door, you will tell them that you and I were home all night. Spin some tale about how we wanted to spend our wedding night in the house we plan on raising our three kids in, or something like that. You’re good at lying,” she growled, throwing her keys onto the kitchen table. “They won’t ask, though. So, don’t you worry your pretty little head about where I’ve been.”

“Clarke,” he snapped, and Clarke stilled.

“And I hope you didn’t call Marcus or Octavia about this,” she warned. She didn’t trust any of them, and there was no way in hell she was going to let their screw ups take down Raven and Echo. “Or even Jasper or Monty. I’m not in the mood to bury another body tonight.”

“You don’t mean that,” he growled as he stepped toward her. Clarke kept her head up, glaring back at him as she crossed her arms.

“You don’t know what I mean,” she snapped. As far as she was concerned, they could all go to hell. Each of them had a part in her torture these past few months, none of them stopping to consider the damage they were doing to her. She could have worked with all of them, yet none of them brought her into the loop. So, she did mean it if it meant keeping her people safe. “You don’t know me. You still can’t figure out how I found you,” she taunted. “We’re basically strangers, legally bound so we may never be compelled to testify against each other in a court of law.”

She smirked at that last part, realizing that she sounded _exactly_ like Thelonious when he would threaten her mother after her divorce threats. Of course, Clarke was turning into everything she hated. But Bellamy needed to know that if he crossed her again, she would take everything from him.

“Why did you go along with this when you clearly knew what I was up to?” he snapped, stepping even closer to her.

“It was a decent plan,” she conceded. “And I would have gotten what I wanted. I just expected you and Marcus to know better than to take your eyes off Thelonious.”

“That wasn’t my fault!” he yelled, and Clarke scoffed at that. She turned toward the stairs because she was not about to be lectured by Bellamy Blake. “So, what was it you wanted? Was it Griffin Global? Was that what you were using this wedding for?” he growled, as if he had any grounds to be pissed at her. He used her first.

“How dare you,” she yelled as she jerked around to face him. “My mother turned my dad’s company into a volatile corporation that profited from man-made disasters. Every time I step in that building, I feel physically ill.” Who the hell did Bellamy think he was? She didn’t want Griffin Global. She didn’t want any of this. She just wanted _him_ , and that realization made it hard to keep her face stoic. She wasn’t about to let him know that.

“That was out of line,” he apologized, stepping back from her.

“You’re damn right it was. I was looking for the same thing you were,” she snapped. They could have been on the same side. They could have worked together. She could be with him and not _hate_ herself for it. “And now, I’m _stuck_ as your wife,” she spat. “And I have nothing to show for it.”

There was the horrible truth of it all. She was stuck in this horrible, cruel plan. Both of them could have called it off, but neither of them did. They just played each other over and over again, and now Clarke was the only one getting hurt… because she let herself fall for it.

She turned around quickly, needing to rush up the stairs to get away from him. “Clarke,” he shouted.

“Leave me alone, Bellamy,” she muttered.

“Please, I just want to explain to you why I did it,” he pleaded.

Clarke turned back around, taking a few steps back down the stairs toward him. “I know why you did it,” she whispered. God, did she know why he did it. She understood, probably better than most could. “And I know that you’ll find a way to avenge your mother and the victims of Mt. Weather.” He had to. If he didn’t, then all of this was truly for nothing. He lied to Clarke, manipulated her, _broke_ her… for nothing. “You know, that night at the hospital, I almost believed that you loved me.”

She stared him down, forced to remember that this was the same man who broke down when she was kidnapped, who desperately stayed by her side when she came back, looking at her with more love in his eyes than she had ever seen in her life. And she loved that man. She just didn’t know if the one standing in front of her right now would ever be that man for her again.

“Clarke, I do love you,” he said, putting his hand on her arm as he stepped closer. She flinched in response, her skin burning where his hand had been.

“Don’t say those words to me ever again,” she growled, turning around quickly to sprint up the stairs.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next update (or two) is going to be a little less intense than these last few have been, since Clarke will be more on the "let's fuck with Bellamy" train and not so much on the "heartbroken over Bellamy" train. Hope y'all are ready for Clarke screwing with Bellamy, handcuffing him to his bed (not in the fun way), and sending him on a wild goose chase (or I guess, cat chase in this case).


	13. Confinement

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it's taking so long between updates but I've been losing motivation on this work. I'm trying, y'all. It's not abandoned, I swear.

_Where are you_?

She blinked a few times at the text, honestly kind of surprised that Bellamy had gotten out of those handcuffs so quickly. But she shouldn’t be surprised. He was a resourceful man, much to her annoyance. She texted him back with a teasing _new phone, who dis_?

She pulled up the feeds of Bellamy’s house on her phone, seeing Jasper Jordan letting himself into the house… which is how Bellamy managed to get out of the handcuffs so quickly. She looked across the room at the clock, catching a brief glimpse of her own painting in the process, but she still had a few more minutes until the feeds were down and it was safe to talk with Thelonious without her _husband_ spying on her. She cringed at that word, nearly choking on it every time she had to say it.

The feed of Bellamy’s house disappeared when he started calling her. “Hello, dear,” Clarke said, waving at her mom as she sleepily made her way down the stairs.

“Where are you?” he snapped.

“Oh sorry, I slipped out while you were still asleep,” she smirked, and her mother furrowed her eyebrows as she stumbled into the kitchen. “I know you must have had a hard time getting out of bed this morning.” Although not hard enough, thanks to Jasper. She wanted him to suffer a bit more.

“Okay, you made your point. Are you done taking out your anger on me?” he huffed, and a smile tugged at Clarke’s lips.

“Not even close,” she replied, leaning back in her seat. She was just getting started.

“Clarke, come home so we can have a civil conversation about this,” he pleaded, and Clarke looked down at her watch. She had just one more minute before the feeds went out, and a smirk formed on her lips. As annoyed as she was with this phone call, she couldn’t deny that she loved the timing of this all. There was no way Bellamy would mistake the feeds going out as a minor glitch now. He would know it was her.

“I’m busy,” she teased, before turning to look directly at the camera Jasper had hidden in the frame on the mantle. “I’ll see you later, sweetie,” she mocked, blowing a kiss right at the camera before hanging up. She watched as the clock struck ten before storming into Thelonious’ office.

“Thought you’d show up eventually,” Thelonious muttered, and Clarke slammed her hands down on his desk.

“You know that your claim to Griffin Global is questionable at best. I’ve been talking with my lawyers—”

“And they are optimistic that things will swing your way?” he mocked, and Clarke clenched her jaw. “Do you have any idea how many times I have done something like this, Clarke? And to people I had far less leverage on?”

“No, you are done threatening me. Here is what will happen: you are going to renounce your plan to make Griffin Global a subsidiary of The Ark and you are going to stay the hell out of my business,” she demanded, and Thelonious finally looked up at her, leaning back in his seat with a smirk on his face.

“No, you will renounce your claim on Griffin Global publicly,” he replied, raising his eyebrows at her. She rolled her eyes. Indra explained that she could keep this in courts long enough to wear Thelonious down and Clarke would eventually get her hands on Griffin Global. She wasn’t optimistic that the information she needed would still be there when she got it, but this was the only plan she had right now.

“You’ve lost your mind.”

“Maybe so, but I think you know what you have to lose if you continue down this path, Clarke,” he replied ominously, and a small chill went up Clarke’s spine. “I know you aren’t stupid or reckless. I know that you have noticed what kinds of things happen to the people who get in The Ark’s way.” Clarke swallowed, knowing that he really meant _his_ way. Her mind flashed to Pike getting thrown under the bus or Wallace being demolished by her family… or Cage being shot on sight even though he wasn’t an active threat to anyone’s life at that moment and could have been taken alive. She started thinking about the list of victims, the stories she read, the boy who tried to kill her for what Thelonious did to his family… she thought about her dad, being murdered just for trying to make things right.

Thelonious was clearly threatening her, but there wasn’t much he could do to her directly. And he knew that. “Tell me, how is your new husband doing? I’m surprised you are here talking with me when you should be enjoying your honeymoon,” he smirked, and Clarke narrowed her eyes at him. “You should really get back to Bellamy. Appreciate the time you have with him.”

And there was his real threat. Back down or he takes it out on Bellamy. Thelonious didn’t know everything about the nature of her relationship with Bellamy, certainly not how twisted and messy it was. But he knew enough to know what a powerful threat this was. “Stop,” she warned. If he laid a hand on Bellamy, Clarke would take him out herself, consequences be damned.

“You know how to make me stop, Clarke,” he growled, pushing himself to stand up. “I want a public renouncement of your claim and signed documents that verify you will never make another move for it in your life,” he snapped, and Clarke bit down on her lip. She could call his bluff right now. He wouldn’t kill Bellamy just to get to Clarke, not when Bellamy was the only thing Clarke had that he could actually threaten… but she wasn’t completely sure. He was in a corner, feeling threatened… meaning he was capable of just about anything. And after Dax nearly killed Bellamy last night, Clarke couldn’t take any chances.

 

It took her a few minutes to brace herself for entering Bellamy’s house. She knew that they would all have heard about her announcement by now, probably harassing her with questions about how she could be so reckless. She had already had Echo and Raven ripping into her over it, furious that Clarke didn’t just call Thelonious’ bluff… but it wasn’t worth the risk.

She tugged her heels off when she got onto the porch, tired of her feet aching. She used her elbow to swing the door open since her hands were full, and was met by Bellamy, Marcus, Monty, and Jasper staring at her. “Oh, people,” she muttered.

“Where have you been all day?” Bellamy snapped, and she rolled her eyes. Like she was going to talk to him about framing Pike or burying the evidence from last night.

“You know, since we got married, you’ve gotten really clingy,” she smirked as she started walking toward the kitchen. She looked around as she walked, realizing they were missing one person. “Where’s your other coconspirator?”

“She’s with her boyfriend,” Monty explained, and she heard Bellamy hit him as she turned the corner into the kitchen.

“Clarke,” Marcus called out, and she grinded her teeth at the sound of his voice. Clarke set the bottle of wine she stole onto the counter before pulling open drawers trying to figure out the Bellamy logic for where he put the fucking bottle opener. “What did Jaha say to you to make you give up Griffin Global?” Clarke turned around, seeing that Bellamy had followed her and Marcus into the kitchen.

“I don’t see how that’s your business, Marcus,” she growled, narrowing her eyes at him.

“You could have fought this. It would have taken time, but you could have won,” he explained in frustration. And yeah, she could have fought this and spent years in court… but what she needed could be gone by the time she won, and it wasn’t like Clarke could risk Thelonious making good on his threats.

“Yeah? Have you ever beaten Thelonious?” Clarke snapped, seeing his eyes fall at those words. Thelonious was the man that drove him out of town in the first place. Marcus couldn’t talk. “He made the consequence of me pursuing Griffin Global quite clear, and it’s not a price I’m willing to pay.” His eyes dropped the floor, her words striking a chord he was not prepared for clearly.

“What did he threaten to do?” Bellamy asked, but Marcus put his hand up.

“Anyways, I stole a bottle of wine from his cellar and his credit card, since that’s about all I can do to him today,” she muttered as she turned to open the bottle. She heard footsteps moving away from her, stealing a glance to see that Bellamy had left when she went to get her glass.

“He did the same thing he did to your mother, didn’t he?” Marcus whispered, and she whipped her head around to glare at him. “He threatened Bellamy, right?”

“Leave me alone,” Clarke warned as she poured out a glass.

“You did the right thing.” Clarke turned to narrow her eyes at him, daring him to say another goddamn thing to her. “None of this is your fault.”

“No, it’s yours,” she growled, and the guilt started to creep into his eyes. “I wouldn’t be in this mess if you had actually stayed around to help me in the first place,” she snapped, knowing that it wasn’t completely fair to blame him for leaving when she knew why he did. Her mother wanted him gone so that Thelonious couldn’t make good on his threats toward her. “I wouldn’t be married to Bellamy if you hadn’t put that thought into his head. And it wouldn’t have been for nothing if you had just kept your fucking eyes on Thelonious Jaha,” she hissed.

“Clarke,” he said apologetically, and she set her glass down. “I know that I have not been doing my best for you, but I am trying.” Her phone went off and she had a text from Raven saying that Bellamy was planning on putting a tracking device in her charm bracelet, and she had to fight not to roll her eyes in front of Marcus.

“You and your little team are working against me still. I’d hardly call that trying.”

“Well, if you would just work _with_ us,” he started, the implication being that somehow Clarke was being the difficult, secretive one here, “maybe we could actually make some progress. But that requires you being honest about what you are up—” he tried to get out before Clarke’s fist darted across his face. He stumbled back, clearly not expecting Clarke to actually hit him.

“Maybe you all should have been honest with me,” she growled, and his eyes flashed wide as he gripped the side of his face. He opened his mouth to say something, but Clarke shot him a glare that seemed to shut him up before he stumbled out of the kitchen.

She settled against the counter, taking a few sips of her wine as she read through Raven’s texts while still trying to be calm. Apparently, Bellamy had enough of Clarke slipping away for one day and was planning on tracking her. She took a few deep breaths before stepping out of the kitchen.

“What did you do?” she heard Jasper ask.

“Well, most recently he made Bellamy propose to me as part of a convoluted scheme to get evidence that could indict my mother,” she muttered, and Jasper and Monty exchanged a nervous look. “What? You all knew that I knew. Also, as I learned today, that plan would have never worked because she won’t give up Thelonious,” she explained. Her mother would never turn on him, not if it meant that she or Marcus could be punished for it.

“What are you talking about?” Bellamy asked, furrowing his brows at her.

“Well, I’m assuming you all figured this out since you bugged my house, but they only married so that they can’t testify against each other,” she muttered into her wine glass. “But apparently, that doesn’t breed a lot of trust,” she smirked as she gave Bellamy a once over. “So, he has a little insurance policy to make sure she never trades information about him to get a lower sentence.”

Marcus’ face went pale at those words and Clarke raised an eyebrow at him. Her eyes drifted over to Bellamy who was staring at her with complete and utter confusion in his eyes. _Good_.

“Just keep that in mind once you make up a new little scheme,” she teased. “I’m going upstairs to do some online shopping with Thelonious’ credit card. Anyone want anything?”

“Uh, the new iPhone looks nice,” Jasper said quietly, earning a groan from Bellamy. But Clarke was amused. All things considered, she might like Jasper the best out of everyone.

“Done,” she smirked, and Monty’s head popped up. “I’ll get you one too,” she joked before looking over at Bellamy, who still looked completely thrown.

“A watch that doesn’t have a tracking device in it would be nice,” he accused, and now Clarke knew where he got his tracking device idea from.

“Look who’s learning,” she mocked as she went toward the stairs. The four of them fell into hushed tones as she made her way upstairs, as if she couldn’t just watch the feeds from her room and hear everything they were saying.

She settled into her bed, making good on her online shopping claims. She was too tired to do much else and too much had happened in the last 48 hours for her to even think about doing much else. She needed to clear her mind if she was going to stay sane. A few minutes and several thousand of Thelonious’ dollars later, she heard Bellamy knock on her door twice. Then, he just let himself in, and she had to fight not to roll her eyes.

“Oh, do you think we’ll still be married by Christmas?” she mocked. “If so, I’m getting you a first edition with Thelonious’ card.”

“Clarke, I’m sorry,” he said, and Clarke fixed her eyes on the screen so that he wouldn’t see how those words caught her off guard. No, she wasn’t engaging in this conversation. She wasn’t going to get dragged into this mess anymore tonight. She couldn’t do that and stay sane.

“Or maybe I’ll get you a handgun with a better grip so you’re less likely to drop it,” she murmured as she pulled out her notepad to jot that down. She ignored her flashback to the night before when she found Dax on Bellamy. Or she tried to, at least.

“Are you hearing me? I want to apologize to you,” he said, making the bold decision to sit on Clarke’s bed.

“I hear you, but I’m ignoring you,” she murmured into her wine glass.

“I’m sorry. I was wrong to do this to you, and I will regret it for the rest of my life,” he started, and the words sounded so genuine until he added in the, “I love you.” He reached for her hand, and she slapped it away quickly before shutting her laptop.

“No, you don’t. Please, stop saying that,” she growled as she pushed herself off the bed.

“Clarke, please,” he begged, and Clarke just needed to get him away from her. She couldn’t think straight when he was too close. She didn’t know what was real and what wasn’t… so he just had to leave.

“I don’t know what your endgame is, and I don’t really care,” she snapped, catching him off guard. “I am here because I have to be, because our wedding was a huge spectacle and if I immediately walk away from it, it looks like I just married you to get Griffin Global. Now, I have things I need to do, so please, leave,” she growled.

“Clarke, we can help each other,” he said, and it took all the willpower in her not to just laugh at him.

“I’ve seen firsthand what your brilliant planning leads to,” she said, thinking back to her kidnapping, Lorelei’s murder, Clarke losing Griffin Global… “I’ll pass.”

 

It was Echo’s idea to drop the tracking device at the Arkadian Men’s Correctional Facility, the same place that Wallace was trapped in and that Pike would soon be. It was Raven’s to attach the device to a moving target. And Clarke was giggling to herself as she put it on the cat she found and attaching another little note to it.

She didn’t know for certain that Bellamy was chasing her, but he didn’t appear on any feeds at home or at his office, and everyone else in his crew seemed to be working out of their own homes. Even if he wasn’t following her, although she was fairly certain he would be after yesterday’s handcuffing, he wasn’t aware of her work in framing Pike.

She got home just moments before he did, struggling to keep a straight face as she heard him scream out for her. His arm was resting on the doorframe when she opened her door. “What kind of game are you playing?” he asked breathlessly, holding up the note that she left on the cat, and a smirk took over her face.

“I don’t play games, I win them.”

“I’m willing to bet you haven’t been here the entire time I was gone. What were you up to today?” he snapped, and Clarke just shrugged as she kept her eyes on her sketchbook. “Clarke, I know you must have done something you don’t want me to know about, otherwise you wouldn’t have made me chase around a cat for two hours,” he snapped, and she burst out laughing. “This isn’t funny!” he shouted.

“Payback’s a bitch,” she smirked. He looked exhausted, confused, and angry… and she loved this look on him. This was the very least he deserved after what he put her through.

“You’re killing me here.”

“And to think it’s only day two,” she smirked, and he groaned.

“Is this penance for what I did to you? Are you just going to keep tormenting me?” Clarke blinked a few times at his words, studying him closely. If she kept this up, he would snap, do something reckless and stupid. That’s what Clarke did when people pushed her to the edge… which gave her an idea.

“Do you think that would be adequate punishment? Messing with your head in return for how you messed with mine?” she asked, wondering just what it would take to make Thelonious or her mother snap. Maybe going for the evidence was the wrong way to go when it was clearly much easier to break a person down instead.

“Clarke…” she heard Bellamy say as she tugged her shoes on and grabbed her keys. “Where are you going?” he groaned as she brushed past him. “Clarke!” he shouted as he chased her down the stairs.

“You just gave me a great idea,” she explained, pulling out her phone to send Echo a quick text that she was coming over.

“For what? Another way to torment me?” he groaned, and she rolled her eyes. He was so low on her priorities list right now. His phone rang, and he answered it with an annoyed, “What?”

Clarke grabbed her jacket as Bellamy ran over to the living room, and she heard him turn on the news. Then, she heard the announcer say, “Charles Pike, who has recently become infamous after bankrupting his hedge fund, has just been taken into custody. After eye witnesses placed Pike as the last person to be in contact with the victim, police investigators found evidence of threatening text messages exchanged between him and the victim.” Clarke let out a breath as she opened the door, relieved that at least that plan was working out.

She ran to her car quickly, starting it just as Bellamy swung the front door open with a panicked expression on his face. He knew. He knew that she was responsible. So, she blew him a kiss and pulled out of their driveway.

 

“You have a call from Finn Collins,” her receptionist said, and Clarke’s head snapped up in confusion. That was a name she hadn’t heard in a while.

“Take a message,” Clarke replied, shaking her head as she redirected her attention to her laptop. Her receptionist stepped back out, closing the door quietly behind her. Clarke wasn’t going to think too hard on why Finn would be calling her, likely furious that he didn’t get invited to her wedding or something stupid like that.

She instead put her headphones back in, listening to Monty argue with Jasper about product color as she read through the new files that Echo had found. Bellamy’s phone started ringing, and Clarke turned her attention back to her main monitor. “Is it my wife?” he groaned, and Clarke clenched her jaw. “Well, then send her up. And Clarke kept her last name,” he corrected. After he hung up, he announced, “Brace yourselves, we have a visitor.” Clarke glanced over at the other camera feeds, seeing Raven stepping onto the elevator. She closed her laptop quickly, directing all her attention to the scene before her.

“Get your boys to stop fucking with my program,” Raven snapped as she slammed her hands on Bellamy’s desk. Clarke had given her okay for Raven to “do something” about Monty and Jasper’s constant meddling, but she just figured it would be messing with their tech and not showing up to their work to scare the shit out of them… not that they didn’t deserve it.

“Jasper, Monty, have either of you had the pleasure of meeting Raven Reyes yet?” Bellamy sighed, looking a little tired. Raven didn’t even bother to look at them, instead eyeing Bellamy with a murderous expression on her face.

“Bellamy, I know you’re not stupid,” Raven started, and Clarke let out a huff. Given his recent actions, that was debatable. “You know that these two can’t get into my program.”

“Becca’s program,” Monty corrected, and Clarke held her breath because the glare Raven shot him could kill.

“This is the first I’m hearing of this,” Bellamy lied, and Clarke rolled her eyes. She literally saw him give the order.

Apparently, Raven was on the same wavelength as Clarke because she said, “I literally heard you give that order in this office, you dumbass.” Realization washed over Bellamy’s face as he shot Monty a panicked look.

“No, there’s no way. We checked just this morning. There are no bugs in this building,” he explained quickly.

“Well, there are security cameras, but they’re unhackable. Only the owner should have access to the live feed,” Jasper explained, and Bellamy’s eyes drifted back toward Raven… the wheels slowly turning before he reached for his phone. Right on cue, Clarke’s phone starting ringing.

“Yes, dear?” she answered with a smirk.

“Did you buy my office building?” he growled, and Raven plopped down across from Bellamy, kicking her feet up onto his desk.

“Well, I’ve always had a passion for real estate,” she mocked, watching him closely on the camera as he seethed with anger. “But that was detailed to you along with all my other assets in our prenuptial agreement. If you have any further questions about that, I will have to direct you to my attorney.”

“Tell me you didn’t buy this building just to spy on me,” he muttered as he pinched the bridge of his nose.

“Jasper and Monty, too,” Clarke smirked. “You know, Raven is really upset with them at the moment. You should get back to resolving that issue.” Bellamy’s eyes darted up to the security camera in his office, the panic growing as he realized she was watching him. Good, maybe now he would know how it feels.

“You’re watching the feed right now, aren’t you?”

“Creepy, isn’t it?”

“Clarke,” he pleaded, closing his eyes. She closed out of the feed, having seen all she needed to see for one day.

“Don’t be late tonight, or I’ll set your car on fire,” she threatened before hanging up. She pushed away from her desk and made her way to the door. Her receptionist was going through her email when she peered out. “What did Finn Collins want?”

“Oh, he just said he would talk to you about it when he sees you tonight,” she replied, and Clarke looked over at Thelonious’ office next door.

“Who is he meeting with?” she asked, noticing that his door had been closed a bit too long. He didn’t have any meetings on the books. Clarke checked. She might not be able to stop him from gutting Griffin Global, but she could at least keep tabs on what he is up to while she is trapped here.

“Mr. Collins,” she whispered. “Well, the older Mr. Collins.”

Clarke pulled out her phone and sent a quick text to update Echo, but Echo was too busy investigating where Octavia had been for the past week since she seemed to disappear altogether. Clarke tried to shake the Collins out of her head, reminding herself that she had her own plan to focus on… but whatever they were here for, it couldn’t be good.

 

She watched her mother’s face carefully, noticing the way her eyes widened when she recognized Riley or how she clammed up when someone mentioned Charles Pike’s arrest. Clarke made eye contact with Echo from across the room, enjoying her knowing smirk. They picked the right mark. Abby Griffin was far more likely to crack than Thelonious. Maybe they couldn’t get her to turn on him, but they could get her rattled enough that she might accidentally lead them to figuring out how to take down Thelonious.

“I’ve been looking for you,” she heard a familiar voice say, and she slowly turned around to see Finn Collins smirking at her. “How have you been?” he asked excitedly as he pulled her in for a hug, and Clarke’s mother excused herself and her friend from the conversation.

“I’ve been good,” Clarke lied as she pulled away.

“I tried calling you earlier to let you know I moved back here,” he explained. She opened her mouth to come up with some bullshit excuse, but then she felt am arm wrap around her waist. She glanced up to see Bellamy at her side, and she was actually grateful he was there for once.

“Hi, I’m not sure we’ve met,” Bellamy said, reaching his hand out. “I’m Bellamy, Clarke’s husband,” he said in the most possessive voice Clarke had ever heard out of him.

“Finn Collins, Clarke’s ex,” he replied, and Clarke barely masked her thrown expression in time to receive a very pointed look from Finn… one that made her nervous about why he was back here.

“Finn was just telling me about how he moved back to Arkadia. Poor thing just barely missed our wedding,” she explained.

“Would have come back sooner if I had known about it. I’m sure my invitation was lost in the mail,” he snapped, eyeing Bellamy carefully.

“It wasn’t,” Clarke corrected, and a blush creeped onto Finn’s cheeks. “Great to see you again,” she said a little harshly as she tugged Bellamy away.

“What is that snake doing back here?” Bellamy whispered into her ear. And had she not been so annoyed with both Finn and Bellamy right now, she might have been able to laugh at his frustration about not successfully getting rid of Finn the first time around.

“Well, his father is talking to Thelonious now, so I have my suspicions,” she muttered as they reached their table. “Thank you for showing up on time,” she huffed as she grabbed a glass of champagne.

“Well, you did threaten to set my car on fire,” he teased.

I wouldn’t do that to you,” she replied. She’d do far worse. “I’d hate for you to lose your Spanish CD’s before you’ve learned your colors.”

“I know my colors, Clarke.”

“Really? How do you say purple?” she asked. “Maybe flee to an English-speaking country. You won’t do well in Mexico,” she teased, and Bellamy leaned a bit closer to her… far too close for her comfort.

“Oh, I’m not going anywhere, Clarke,” he said with a smile, and a smirk formed on her lips. No, he wasn’t. He was going to stay right where she could keep an eye on him. She glanced up to see Wells, quickly waving him over so that she had someone to talk to other than her husband.

“There are the newlyweds,” Roan said excitedly, and Clarke swallowed. She needed to be happy for them… no matter what her personal feelings toward Roan might be. It could be worse. Clarke knew firsthand how it could have been worse.

“Are you two fighting?” Wells whispered into her ear, and her jaw clenched. Right, she needed to be better about playing the part when they were in public.

“Is this where the family decided to sit?” her mother asked, “Thelonious, over here,” she called out, and Clarke gripped the side of her seat. She didn’t want to be anywhere near Thelonious. Clarke was about one more threat away from snapping and taking him out herself. Then, Bellamy grabbed her hand. She raised an eyebrow, hating that he was basically challenging her to snap at him.

“What do you think you’re doing?” she whispered right into his ear.

“I’m just playing the part,” he replied a bit bitterly, and she relaxed her hand in his. Then, just as he relaxed back into his seat, she stomped her heel onto his foot, watching in amusement as he tried to mask the pain. She would have enjoyed it more if Finn Collins hadn’t taken the seat beside Bellamy. Her eyes darted to Thelonious, wondering why the hell the Collins were sitting with them. But he ignored her, carrying on his conversation with Finn’s father.

“Honestly, I couldn’t believe it when I heard the news,” Mr. Collins said, and Clarke noticed Bellamy slide his chair closer to her.

“I know. I’ve known Charles for a long time. He’s just not that kind of man,” her mother said, and Clarke realized that Finn had been staring at her. Oh, Bellamy was doing that weird possessive thing again. She rolled her eyes as she refocused on the conversation.

“You think you know someone,” Thelonious said.

“I still think he’s innocent,” Clarke said, savoring the momentary panic in Thelonious’ eyes.

“I wish I was that much of an optimist. But my friends tell me he looks pretty guilty,” Mr. Collins said, meaning that even if he wasn’t guilty, his friends would make sure he was deemed guilty. She felt Bellamy’s arm rest on the chair behind her as he leaned closer.

“Of course, you think he’s innocent,” Bellamy whispered right into her ear as soon as the conversation continued around them. “You framed him.”

A smirk formed on her lips as she looked back at him. Maybe he wasn’t as clueless as she thought. “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” she whispered back, and a defiant look flashed across his eyes.

“It was sweet of you to visit him in jail. Wonder what the two of you have to talk about,” he accused, a panic set in. He wasn’t supposed to know about that. He was supposed to be distracted when she did that yesterday. It wasn’t like she was even there long enough, and no footage would have caught her.

“Clarke, you two are quite a good-looking couple,” Mr. Collins observed, snapping Clarke out of focus.

“Well, we try to do our best,” Clarke joked as she leaned into Bellamy’s shoulder, feeling him stiffen up against her.

“A quick romance, much like two other people I know,” he said, and Clarke caught Finn scowling out of the corner of her eye. _Oh_.

“It practically materialized out of thin air,” her mother said with a bite to her tone, and Clarke was not about to let her mother take digs at her over this.

“What can I say? I love him,” she spat out as she grabbed Bellamy’s hand. Luckily, conversation drifted back to The Ark, which confirmed Clarke’s suspicions about why the Collins men were back in Arkadia.

“You know,” Bellamy whispered right into her ear, almost making her jump, “I can’t tell when you’re lying anymore.”

She gripped his hand a bit tighter as she turned to evaluate his face. He was just as confused as he normally was these days, and Clarke couldn’t help but relish in his confusion. At least this way she wasn’t the only one suffering in this battle of what was real and what wasn’t. So, she pressed a quick peck to his lips, causing him to stiffen even more. “Terrifying, isn’t it?” she smirked, loving the way his eyes widened in panic.

 

“His idiots must have hacked one of our phones,” Echo growled over the speakerphone, and Clarke pressed her lips together.

“What the fuck are you saying?” Raven snapped.

“No one is saying anything,” Clarke jumped in before Echo said something that would piss Raven off. “I just want to know where the leak in information is so that he doesn’t figure out what I’m up to again,” Clarke explained, still rattled that Bellamy knew that she visited Pike in prison. Of course, he would figure out that she was behind what happened to Pike. He wasn’t stupid, just a bit reckless. But he wouldn’t have been able to guess that she went to that prison unless someone told him. And Clarke could count on one hand the number of people who knew.

“Have you had any luck tracking Bellamy’s phone?” Echo asked, and Clarke let out a sigh. It was stupid, the worrying about him. But last time Clarke didn’t know where he was, she found him almost being killed at that warehouse. If he just kept that watch on, she’d be able to tell if he was in trouble and needed her help.

“Do you have any idea how many tasks you two have thrown onto me tonight? You forget I’m still working on getting Pike locked up for good,” Raven said, and Clarke bit her lip… grateful that they were talking on their burner phones for this.

“Don’t worry about that anymore,” Clarke said quietly.

“What?” Raven huffed.

“Just… he won’t be in there for long anyway,” Echo jumped in, and Clarke heard Bellamy’s car door shut.

“Got to go,” Clarke said quickly, hanging up as Raven shouted, demanding an explanation. She took a deep breath as he approached, frustrated by how relieved she was to actually see him after him being gone for hours. When he walked in, he seemed off. Worried, even. But he shouldn’t have anything to worry about, or not that she was aware of from what she had observed of him and his coconspirators. “What’s wrong?” she asked.

“Nothing,” he muttered, and she closed her laptop.

“Bellamy,” she said seriously. His eyes met hers, a debate going on behind those eyes. Right, he couldn’t really trust her, not after all the hell she had been putting him through lately. It wasn’t like she was in this with him or anything, which was entirely her choice at this point anyway.

“Octavia’s pregnant. Please keep that quiet since no one else knows,” he said, and Clarke blinked a few times. Well, she wasn’t expecting that. The first place her mind went to was that Octavia being pregnant put her and Bellamy at a uniquely vulnerable position, that there was now one more person added to the list of people who could be hurt by all of this. She couldn’t stay here… no, she would have to leave for her own safety. Surely Bellamy had thought of that already, likely the reason for his change in disposition. And he was clearly panicked. He was very protective of Octavia, so this scared the shit out of him.

“I have a list of doctors she could use, and one of my friends has a really good birthing class to recommend,” Clarke blurted out, but she didn’t know what else to say to comfort him. So, she just kept talking, listing off the doctors she knows and trusts personally. She talked about literally everything except the inevitable truth that Octavia was going to have to run for her life if she wanted to keep herself and her baby safe.

“Thank you,” Bellamy cut her off, and Clarke finally realized just how much she had been talking.

 

“I think her boyfriend Lincoln will go with her,” Clarke explained, still dreading the conversation she had yet to have with Bellamy where she brought up just how dangerous it is for Octavia to be near him with what he was up to.

“Yeah, I already have his information to give to my guy,” Echo groaned as she packed yet another gun into her bag. “Tell me, why am I wasting my time on this shit for your fake husband?”

“He’s my real husband,” Clarke reminded, as much as she might hate it. “I’m calling a temporary ceasefire because now there is a baby in the mix. No innocent lives in danger, remember?” Clarke’s phone started vibrating in her pocket, and she put Raven on speaker.

“What do you know about a storage unit in your husband’s name?” Raven asked, and Clarke’s stomach dropped.

“Nothing,” Clarke said worriedly, and Echo set her bag down.

“I’ve got him visiting this new storage unit several times in the last week, the most recent time being earlier today,” Raven explained.

“Alright, let’s go check it out,” Echo huffed, and Clarke narrowed her eyes at her.

“No, you already have a mission for tonight,” she snapped. As much as she could probably use Echo’s help on this, getting Octavia and Lincoln’s plans in order was more important. No one else was going to get hurt because of this. That had to be the number one priority, or else she wasn’t any better than Thelonious.

Echo dangled her car keys in front of Clarke, and Clarke reached into her bag to toss her keys to Echo before snatching Echo’s keys out of her hand. “If you die tonight, I’m taking it out on your husband, got it?” she snapped, and Clarke rolled her eyes as she started marching toward the door.

Raven started relaying the unit information, and Clarke got ready to go track down whatever Bellamy was hiding in there. She was fairly certain that Bellamy didn’t know anything that Clarke didn’t already know, but maybe she could figure out how he seemed to know what she was up to despite her best efforts to keep it a secret.

Raven informed her that Bellamy was at Monty’s apartment, meaning she was clear to go break into his storage unit.

When she got to the storage unit front office, there was only one person working the desk. “Hi, I seem to have left my key to my unit back at the house. Is there any way I can still get in?” she asked sweetly.

“Uh, yeah, but you will have to have your security passcode,” the boy working the desk stuttered out. “What unit?”

“152B. It will be under my husband’s name, Bellamy Blake,” she said, and he pulled it up. “And I’m pretty sure the security passcode is Augustus99,” she guessed, if his other passcodes were any indicator. She doubted he figured out that she knew them all by now.

“Your husband must be really into history,” the guy joked as he typed it in.

“He is. He’s a self-proclaimed nerd,” she replied, looking over the counter to see that the passcode had gone through. He got up to go grab the key, and Clarke looked down at her phone to see that her text to Raven still hadn’t gone through. God, the service was terrible out here.

She took the key from him before making her way out, double checking that she had her gun on her… just in case. She made her way toward the unit, unlocking it before sliding the door open. Inside, there was only one actual cabinet… but Clarke wasn’t sure what she was really expecting.

She was digging through the middle drawer when she heard footsteps. Her head popped up to see Bellamy stepping into the unit. “What are you doing here?” she snapped. Raven explicitly said that he was still at Monty’s. Besides, he had already been here once today. No, something was wrong.

Then, she saw Marcus Kane right behind him as Bellamy stepped toward her. “Sorry about this, Clarke,” he said, and she took off running toward the door as he slid it shut, but it was too late. She tried pulling it back up, but like an idiot, she left her keys in the lock itself… meaning Marcus locked her in here with _him_.

“Marcus!” she screamed as she pounded on the door. She was going to kill him as soon as she got out of here. And Bellamy… well, he was in for a new kind of hell. She kept hitting the door in anger, but it didn’t budge, it didn’t dent. Bellamy leaned against the door with a smirk on his face, and all of Clarke’s fury flew to the person who truly deserved it: her husband.

“He’ll let us out tomorrow morning at 10:00 sharp,” he teased, and she took a step toward him.

“That’s thirteen hours from now,” she growled. He didn’t want to be trapped with her for thirteen hours. She would actually kill him at this rate.

“Then,” he whispered as he took a step toward her, pushing her to back up against the storage unit door, “you better get comfortable.” There was a darkness in his eyes as he stared her down, the kind that scared her. She was trapped in here with him for _thirteen hours_ , assuming he was telling her the truth. A lot can happen in thirteen hours.

“What are you trying to pull here, Bell?” she asked, cocking her head to the side. She couldn’t see into his thoughts. She couldn’t ask Raven what he’s been up to. She had no idea what the point of this was or what he was up to. And she didn’t know what to do.

“I just want to talk,” he murmured, lifting his hand to brush a piece of hair out of her face, tucking it behind her ear… an alarmingly intimate gesture considering what the two of them had been doing to each other. And it took all the willpower she had left in her not to just beat the shit out of him right here and now.


	14. Detainment

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Got another one for you. I'm feeling a lot more motivated to work on this one now, so thank you to everyone who has been sending me positive encouragement. I'll try to keep this up as best as I can.

There had to be a way out. There was always a way out. She clenched her eyes shut, trying to remember what Echo instructed her to do if she found herself trapped anywhere… but she never prepared her to get locked into a storage unit with her too clever husband.

“Lock is on the outside,” he smirked as Clarke put a bit more pressure on the bottom of the door. “Picked this storage unit specifically because I couldn’t break out from inside it.” Furious, Clarke kicked the door viciously with her boot. He fucking tested this out so that she wouldn’t be able to get out. She might be craftier than him, but there is no denying that he is physically stronger. And cleverness aside, Clarke hadn’t had time to prepare to escape, but Bellamy did. So if he couldn’t get out, odds were that she couldn’t either.

“Have you lost your fucking mind?” she screamed as she lunged toward him.

“Probably,” he teased, and she hit him right on the chest. He grabbed her wrist, blocking her from being able to hit him again. She tried to pull her wrist from his grasp, but he had a tight hold on her. “You done?” he asked in the most condescending tone he could manage.

“You just bought yourself thirteen hours of me. I’m nowhere near done,” she growled. Her right arm came swinging at him, but his other hand caught it in time before she could land a blow right across his face.

“Wouldn’t want to bruise my handsome face,” he smirked, and Clarke was about to kick him before he pushed her backwards and gripped even tighter onto her wrists.

“Let go of me,” she demanded. If he didn’t let go of her, she was going to kill him.

“Are you going to stop trying to hit me?” he asked, raising his eyebrows. Of course, she wasn’t. But he wasn’t going to let her go unless she agreed, so she begrudgingly nodded her head and he let go. She darted to the other side of the unit, pressing her back against the opposite wall so that she could be as far away from him as possible.

What was his plan here? She couldn’t figure out what he could possibly gain from trapping her with him for a whole night, unless his plan was to make her furious and murderous. She slid down the wall to sit on the ground, trying to figure out her next move. There might be something in the other drawers of the cabinet that could help get her out sooner, but if there were, Bellamy would never let her get to it. She could shoot her way out, but that would draw attention and before they knew it the police would be going over the footage and trying to figure out why Clarke’s husband would trap her in a storage unit with him all night… and that wasn’t the kind of attention Clarke needed right now.

She turned her head, seeing Bellamy sitting down across from her, his eyes intensely focused on her. “You locked me in here with you, and now you’re just going to stare at me?” she mocked.

“Just until you calm down enough for us to have a conversation,” he replied, and she clenched her jaw. He trapped her in here so that they could _talk_ … how ridiculous. As if locking her in here with him would be enough to get her to open up to him.

“There’s nothing I don’t know in those files, is there?” she had to ask, and he shook his head. She threw her head back, tracing the stupid steps that got her in here. She should have brought back up. She shouldn’t have jumped the gun and assumed Bellamy was hiding something in here. No, Bellamy set a trap for her, a perfectly made trap.

“What were you hoping to find?” he asked, but she wasn’t about to indulge that question. In fact, she wasn’t going to speak to him. After all, that’s what he wanted. So, she wasn’t going to give it to him.

She readjusted herself to get comfortable, looking casually around the unit for anything heavy enough to hit Bellamy with. If she could knock him out, she could probably find a way out of here. And odds are he wouldn’t be stupid enough to trap himself with a woman who loathes him without an escape route.

“So, why did you frame Pike for Dax’s murder?” he asked, and she turned her head away from him. She tried to remember if she set up a check in time with Raven, but she was fairly certain she didn’t. Raven had so much on her plate and Clarke hadn’t really considered her task for the night to be dangerous. It was just a little storage unit on the edge of town, nothing too dangerous… God, Clarke was an idiot. “Was it just to remove any suspicion from you?”

She fought to roll her eyes at that. If she had just wanted to remove suspicion from herself, she could have framed Bellamy for it and gotten rid of two problems at once. “Or did it have more to do with you thinking that Pike needed more punishment than what I gave him?” Well, at least he was getting closer. Maybe there’s hope for him yet.

A few minutes passed, and Clarke could still feel his gaze intensely on her face. “You’ve visited him twice in prison now, and your lawyer has taken on his case, which I can only imagine is so you can communicate with him without anyone being allowed to listen in,” he hypothesized, and Clarke fixed her eyes on her nails. “Are you just going to ignore me for thirteen hours?”

“Twelve and a half,” she corrected with a smirk.

“So you are listening,” Bellamy replied, and she bit down on her lip. Right, she wasn’t supposed to engage. “In that case, I love you, Clarke.”

Her eyes flickered up to him without her consent. Her stomach tightened at those words. She hated those words, especially when they came out of his lying mouth… because every time she forgets that he is probably lying to her and has to relearn that horrible truth about her relationship with him… that it was all built on a lie. “And this is all, what? You hoping that Stockholm Syndrome will kick in?” she growled.

“This is me saying that I’m tired of playing games with you, Clarke. I want to clear the air and work through our problems,” he said calmly, and she actually did roll her eyes this time.

“Well, that’s too bad because I don’t want to,” she replied. No, she wanted to get away from him, to put this Mt. Weather nightmare to bed and wash her hands of Bellamy Blake for good.

“So, you just want to torment me and mess with my head indefinitely?” he snapped defensively, and Clarke fixed her gaze upward, ignoring him again. They fell into another silence, and she could tell it was starting to get to Bellamy. She still couldn’t figure out his train of logic that led to him luring her into this trap. He should know that they were done, without a chance in hell of ever recovering what they once “had.” There were too many lies in between them now, too many instances of them using each other and playing each other. Neither of them knew what was real and what wasn’t… or maybe Bellamy did somehow.

“You weren’t the original mark. Wells was,” he finally whispered after a prolonged silence.

“I know,” she muttered. That was such old news to Clarke.

“Of course, you do,” he huffed. “But you were the one to tell Octavia that Wells wouldn’t be interested, so we had to switch up tactics. That’s when you became my mark,” he continued, and she adjusted herself, so she was propped up in the corner. She didn’t need a play by play of how she got where she was. She knew exactly how the two of them got to this point. “Marcus asked us to leave you out of this, so don’t be mad at him. He had nothing to do with you being used,” he defended, and that snapped Clarke back into focus.

“You’re conveniently leaving out the fact that it was his idea for you to marry me,” she said. She was going to stay just as pissed at Marcus Kane no matter what Bellamy said. He knew what he was doing. He knew long before Bellamy met Clarke just what this kind of thing would do to her.

“I still don’t know how you know that,” he snapped, and a smirk formed on her face.

“You need to be more careful about where you vent to Octavia,” she mocked. She could see the wheels turning in Bellamy’s head out of the corner of his eye, and her smirk only grew at his frustration.

“Please,” he said abruptly, “tell me that you didn’t bug my house.” She turned to look at him, grinning like an idiot as she played over the night his house was bugged in her head… the way Bellamy was so easily manipulated into letting his guard down, the way that Clarke could just wrap him around her finger as Echo stole an IP address and Raven bugged his house.

“Okay, _I_ didn’t,” she clarified.

“How long have there been cameras in my house, Clarke?” he screamed, hitting the wall behind him with his fist. Her smile grew even more. She made him snap.

“Who knows?” she teased, and he pushed himself to stand up.

“I’m getting rid of them,” he growled.

“No, you’re not,” she replied. Those cameras were staying right where they were, and it wasn’t like she believed that Jasper or Monty would be able to find all of them.

Bellamy was now pacing in front of her, something she learned was something he did when he needed to calm down. “I can’t just have you and Raven, and possibly Echo watching everything that goes on in my house!” he screamed.

“Why not?” she snapped, pushing herself to her feet. “You and your friends have been watching my house for longer,” she pointed out. What Clarke was doing to him was no different than what he did to her first.

“To get information about the two people responsible for bringing down Mt. Weather, Clarke! That is a legitimate reason to keep surveillance,” he huffed, and Clarke crossed over to him, shoving him back against the wall.

“And I wanted information,” she hissed, “about the man who tricked me into letting him in my life, who was playing me so he could be some kind of Trojan horse into my family.” She pushed him again, slamming him harder against the wall. His nose flared up as he glared at her fiercely, enraged somehow that she would dare compare the two. But Clarke didn’t have the tolerance to be fucked over by anyone, not anymore. Her entire life had been people controlling her, manipulating her, tricking her… making it hard for her to see what was real and what wasn’t. And Bellamy might not have been the one to do the most damage, but he was the one who knew better.

And she hated him.

“You played me too, Clarke,” Bellamy snapped, and she didn’t hesitate to slap him across the face. He gripped her wrist tightly, shooting her a warning look… practically daring her to try that again. “You knew what I was doing, and instead of confronting me, you let me think I was succeeding. When I said I loved you, you said it back. When I proposed, you said yes. You had an active part in all of this,” he growled as if somehow what Clarke did to him could ever compare to what he did to her.

“But you played me first,” Clarke yelled, pushing him back. Bellamy lied to her first. Bellamy used her first. Clarke didn’t start this, but she was determined to finish it.

Bellamy had to tight of a hold on Clarke, pushing her backwards so her back ended up against the wall. “I know,” he whispered, staring her right in the eye. “I used you first, and I’m so sorry, Clarke.”

“I hate you,” she spat, looking up at him defiantly.

“No, you don’t,” he smirked, leaning forward as his arm braced itself above her head. “You’ve saved my life twice now, Clarke,” he whispered, his lips just an inch away from her ear. “You could have let me die and gotten out of this marriage without looking like you were just using this to get Griffin Global. But for some crazy reason, you care if I live or die.”

He was messing with her head again, using whatever ridiculous feelings she developed for him to lure her into giving him whatever it was that he wanted from her this time. But Clarke could mess with him too, that much she had figured out. She was his blind spot. It was how she got away with as much as she had been when it came to him.

She put her hand on his chest, much gentler than she had touched him since the day they married. And immediately, his eyes softened and his guard dropped. She slid her hand up to cup his face, reveling in the hopeful look in his eyes… much like one she was certain she had when she thought Bellamy would ever choose her over his plan for revenge or the one she had that night after she was kidnapped, when his _I love you_ felt like it was actually real.

Rage surged through her as she recalled just how many times Bellamy had let her think this would be real, and she yanked his head back by his hair, earning a loud, “Fuck!” from him.

“Stop trying to play around in my head, Bellamy. You’ve already done enough damage,” she warned before throwing him back.

“I’m sorry,” he stuttered out as he rubbed his head.

“Not sorry enough,” she growled before hitting him again. No, he could never be sorry enough. He didn’t know just how badly he screwed with her. He didn’t consider that after years of therapists and family playing games inside her head that having someone she let herself love do it to her would be her breaking point. He broke her, and there was nothing he could do to fix it.

He lunged forward, pressing his entire body against her to sandwich her between him and the wall. She frantically tried pushing him away as he wrestled his arms down, and she started kicking at him in response. When he finally had both her wrists in his hands, he slammed them against the wall above her head. “You wouldn’t know how sorry I am,” he huffed breathlessly, his face too close to hers, “because you won’t talk to me.” She turned her head to the side as she tried to figure out how to get out of his grasp this time. “Actually, you probably do know, because you’ve been watching me, Clarke. You’ve seen me cry myself to sleep over this. You saw me break down the night before the wedding. You know just how much I hated myself for what I was doing to you,” he growled.

 _Not enough to stop him_ , apparently. She let her eyes fall closed, trying to jerk away the memory of his breakdown the night before their wedding, or the way he broke when she was kidnapped… but those weren’t things he could fake, those were real. “Eyes open, Clarke,” he ordered, and she forced them open to look at his dark eyes. “Talk to me.”

“I have nothing to say to you,” she snapped. And she didn’t trust herself to say anything. She didn’t know what she was to him. She didn’t know what he was to her.

“Then, you can listen,” he replied, his face just an inch away from hers. “I haven’t lied to you once since the night we buried Dax, Clarke. I’m done lying to you, and I’m done playing games. I’m just waiting for you to stop.”

She didn’t know if that was true. She found her heart wanting to believe it, but her heart wanted to believe a lot of things that didn’t end up being true when it came to Bellamy Blake. “It was you that sent me the video of Raven and Finn, right?” she asked quietly, although she already knew the answer. She was testing his honesty, and he passed with a nod. “And you used me to make Pike think that Griffin Global was buying out Frontier Dynamics?” she asked again, and he nodded again.

“Clarke,” he whispered.

“Let go of me,” she said quietly. She needed to get away from him. The closeness of him was starting to get to her. This was closer than they had been since they married, closer than she had ever allowed herself to be out of a fear of how easily she seemed to cave where Bellamy was concerned. He was a man who constantly drove to ignore her better instincts in a hope that her heart might just be right for once… though it never was.

“Are you going to hit me again?” he asked, and he reached up to touch her cheek… a gesture that made her need to get away from him even stronger. No, she wasn’t going to let him confuse her anymore.

“Probably,” she blurted out.

“Then, I’m not letting go,” he replied, and a smirk formed on Clarke’s face. Well, she gave him an easy way to give her what she wanted… and he rejected it.

“Doesn’t it bother you that I lied to you too?” she mocked, and his jaw clenched. Oh, yes it did. She could see it in his eyes. “That I said I love you too when you lied to me. That every time I fucked you or kissed you after that point, I _knew_ it wasn’t real,” she kept going, and he kept his eyes downcast, almost as if he was scared to look at her.

She waited for half a second to see if he would back off her, to spare himself the agony of having her mess with him like he did with her. But he didn’t, and the vindictive part of Clarke was grateful. “That I dragged you away from that art auction, telling you how badly I wanted you…” she started, and his eyes met hers in a panic. “That while you were fucking me against a wall and I was whispering that I loved you, Echo was stealing Monty’s IP address and Raven was bugging your house,” she taunted, and his eyes fell at her words.

“Clarke, stop,” he warned, and she was so close to breaking him.

“Make me,” she replied. All he had to do was let her go, leave her alone, get her out of this storage unit… just let her get away from him and she’d never be able to taunt him like this again. Whatever Bellamy’s motives were, something fell apart along the way because he actually cared that Clarke was playing him too. There was a part of him that was devastated that she lied to him too when she said she loved him, and she was going to keep tugging at that part of him until he completely fell apart unless he just let her go.

He narrowed his eyes at her, and for a moment Clarke thought he would at least loosen his hold on her. But instead, she was silenced by his lips slamming onto hers, and her mind went blank for a brief moment. His lips were hot against hers, harshly searing against hers as he gripped her face tightly, and it knocked the wind right out of her. As soon as Clarke came to grips with what was happening, he was pulling his lips off her, his dark eyes gazing at her intensely. “What the hell do you think you’re doing?” she shouted, trying to shake whatever the hell that just was.

“You had those cameras in my house while you were kidnapped,” he said quickly, and she blinked a few times. He tilted her head up sternly, forcing her to look right at him. “You’ve seen how I reacted,” he snapped, and she kept her eyes trained on his.

“You just felt guilty,” she deflected.

“No, I was devastated,” he corrected, leaning his head just a bit closer to hers, and Clarke held her breath. Something about hearing those words from his lips… it just made her thoughts go a bit fuzzy. Or maybe it was his closeness combined with the fact that for some reason, after everything he has done to her, she still wanted to believe that some part of this was real. “You know that it became real for me, don’t you?” She could feel her own resolve start to falter as she fought off her own tears at his words.

“You kept playing me,” she forced herself to say, more to herself than anyone. It was real for him, but he kept playing her. It was real for her, and she kept letting him play her while she played him too. She forced herself to meet his eyes, which were softly looking at hers… a softness she hadn’t seen in so long… a softness that she so desperately missed.

She missed when she thought this was simple, when she thought he was just a sweet guy who she could find a way to be happy with. Instead, she found someone just as broken and twisted as she was, someone who knew just as well as she did about what it was like to become a monster just to take down bigger monsters.

She was readier for it when he kissed her this time, her lips nearly crying out in relief at the feeling of his lips on hers… almost as if they belonged there. He let go of her wrists, and she knew she should push him away, to not give in to him again… but she couldn’t.

“Tell me to stop,” he whispered against her lips, his eyes meeting hers. She let her eyes fall to his chest as she grabbed the lapels of his coat. She couldn’t keep looking at him when he was gazing at her like that. She couldn’t think straight when he was like this with her.

“I’m still pissed at you,” she clarified, reminding him that her giving in to whatever this was isn’t a concession.

“I know,” he smirked, and she still wanted to slap that smirk right off his face. But she was also really fucking tired of fighting him right now, of pretending like she didn’t still want him.

She pushed him back so he hit the file cabinet before crashing her lips onto him, not even pretending to be gentle as she moaned right into his mouth. Yes, this is what she needed. She started unbuttoning his coat, savoring the feeling of Bellamy gripping onto her hair as he pulled her tight against him. She couldn’t remember the last time she felt his warm tongue in her mouth or the last time she felt him whimper into her mouth… but she didn’t realize how much she craved it until now.

She started ripping off his coat in a frenzy as her lips burned their way down his neck. “Clarke,” he moaned, and she felt his hand slip inside her coat, finding her waist, and Clarke couldn’t help but bite onto his collarbone.

“You’re wearing too much,” she decided as she pulled off her coat and threw it to the ground.

“Then, do something about it,” he smirked, and Clarke took the challenge, practically tearing off his belt. She felt his hands running through her hair, tugging gently to get her to look at him. His dark eyes were piercing, almost dangerous. It struck Clarke that this was the first time they were doing this where both of them knew exactly who the other person really was. Clarke knew exactly what Bellamy was, and Bellamy knew what she was. “You’re so sexy when you’re pissed,” he growled, and she could feel her own arousal grow at those words. She abandoned his belt, cupping his bulge through his pants as she eyed him carefully.

“How about now?” she smirked, feeling his cock twitch in her hand.

“Never been sexier,” he stuttered out, and she let her thumb stroke his erection through the fabric. “Clarke, please.”

“Please, what?” she teased, loving how desperate he looked as her hand stilled, completely at her mercy.

“Keep going. Are you going to make me beg?” he asked, and her smirk only grew. “Please, princess. Don’t stop. I need you,” he pleaded, and those words sounded so beautiful to Clarke. She tugged the zipper of his pants down, moving as slowly as she possibly could. No, she wasn’t quite done playing games with him.

Bellamy pushed himself off the cabinet, grabbing Clarke quickly as he slammed his lips into hers. She felt her back hit the cabinet as he pressed his entire warm body against hers. “You fucking tease,” he growled against her lips.

“What are you going to do about it?” she teased as she let her hand trail down his chest toward the waistband of his pants before stopping. Bellamy pulled her hair again, pressing a biting kiss just below her jawline as he did.

His lips started making their way up to her ear, each kiss getting dirtier. He tugged on her earlobe gently with his teeth, sending chills up her spine. His breath was hot on her ear as he growled, “I’m going to fuck you, Clarke.” She sucked in a breath as his hand travelled down her body, stopping to undo the top of her jeans. He slid his hand into her pants, cupping her warm pussy over her panties… and now Clarke was completely and utterly at his mercy. She found herself grinding against his very still hand, growing too impatient. It had been too long, and she hadn’t realized how desperate she really was for him. “God, you’re already so wet for me, baby.”

“Bell,” she whimpered.

“Should I tease you like you’ve been teasing me?” he whispered, voice low, before his lips began sucking below her ear. He slowly worked a finger inside of her, but that wouldn’t be enough for Clarke. No, she needed all of him, right this second.

“No, please,” she whispered.

He slowly worked another finger inside of her, and she could hear just how wet she was. “Then, tell me exactly what you want,” he said as his lips grazed hers.

“I want my husband to fuck me,” she replied, watching his eyes spark at those words.

“Naked, now,” he snapped as he pulled away to pull off his own shirt. She didn’t have to be told twice. The two of them stripped down, Clarke stealing glances at his muscled torso as she undressed. And before she knew it, she was on her back, lying on top of his coat so that she didn’t have to lie on the cold storage unit floor, as Bellamy paid generous attention to her breasts. His lips and teeth were teasing her too much, and Clarke was not about to wait another second when she was ready for him now.

“Bellamy, so help me god,” she groaned, and his lips let go of her nipple with a loud pop before moving to the other one, his tongue quickly swirling around in torturously. “I need you inside of me, now.” And he just smirked at her as he leaned up to kiss her.

“Right now?” he teased, and Clarke leaned forward to bite his bottom lip.

“Now,” she growled. He was chuckling sweetly as he pulled away to pull her panties off, a soft smile on his lips… one she hadn’t seen in so long.

She watched as he fumbled to get his briefs off, his eyes raking over her with nothing but desire in them. When he climbed back on top of her, she clung to him, driven mad by the feeling of his cock brushing against her throbbing clit.

“Please,” she whined, letting her eyes fall closed. She needed him. She needed him desperately.

“Eyes open, princess,” he snapped, and her eyes jerked back open to see a very serious expression on his face. “I want you to watch me while I fuck you,” he growled as he positioned himself at her entrance, and Clarke could only watch breathlessly as he pressed himself inside her, feeling him fill her up so perfectly. Her breathing was already sporadic as he began his first thrusts, and when he lowered himself on top of her, she gripped back onto him, desperate for something to hold onto.

She captured his lips, whimpering and moaning into his mouth as he stretched her out. “Bellamy, fuck,” she whimpered, tugging at her curls frantically. It was too much, too perfect… too Bellamy.

“You feel so good, sweetheart,” he moaned into her skin, sending chills throughout her body. His words were so soft, so gentle… so loving. And God, she loved him, no matter how twisted this whole thing was. This was the first time her mind let her feel any form of happiness since that disaster the night they were married, the first time she felt peace again. “Clarke,” he whispered against her lips, and her eyes stayed fixed on his.

“Yeah?” she pleaded desperately, knowing that she would fall apart if he so much as looked at her the right way.

“I need you to tell me something,” he murmured before pressing a quick peck to her lips. She nodded frantically while Bellamy slowed down his thrusting, making Clarke’s body nearly cry out from need. “That night, after you got home safely,” he said cautiously, and Clarke nodded along, “you said you loved me. Was that one real?” he asked with an earnestness that made Clarke’s chest warm. Of course, that one was real. She was so desperately gone for him. He was the only thing she could hold onto, the only thing worth getting out of bed in the morning for. That was the very _I love you_ that damned Clarke, that made her very much his.

And the fear in his eyes as he awaited his answer told him that it was the same for him too. He was hers. That night threw away any chance that the two of them could ever pretend that they weren’t each other’s. She nodded, her eyes starting to well up with tears. That night was real, just like this night was real.

His lips attacked hers fiercely, her body crying out in relief at the desperate way he was kissing her. She could feel tears against her cheeks, but she didn’t know if they were hers or his. He pressed a slower kiss to her lips, and her nails dug into his back, urging him to thrust a bit faster.

Her breath became ragged as his hips slammed into her harder. “Come on, Clarke,” he murmured as his hand slid down her stomach before reaching her clit. “Come for me, princess. You’re so gorgeous when you come for me,” he said, his voice sounding wrecked as he spoke.

“Bell,” she whispered before he pushed her leg up, pressing even deeper inside of her. “Fuck,” escaped her lips as he pounded harder into her.

“Good, princess. Come for me,” he murmured as he peppered kisses all over her face, and his voice was like quick sand… dragging her under before she could even fight it. She fought to keep her eyes on his as she pulsed around his cock, falling apart quickly as swears started slipping off her lips. She was nearly in tears as his lips found hers again, feeling his grunts echo in her mouth as she clung to him.

When she finally started to calm down, he had rested against her, catching her breath with such a happy look on his face, a look she had hardly ever gotten to see. A look that she desperately wanted to keep seeing.

 

“I decided that instead of going home, I would disappear,” she explained as Bellamy ran his hands up and down her arms. “I knew Marcus had a plan to make things right, and I just needed to stay out of the way until that happened.” Although, she wondered what would have happened if she had stayed out of the way. Marcus’ plan would have fallen apart immediately if she wasn’t there and they couldn’t use Wells as the target.

“Clarke, what happened?” Bellamy asked, clearly more invested in what happened to her when she was attacked all those years ago, but an angry Bellamy was the last thing the world needed right now.

“Not important,” she blew it off, feeling Bellamy huff in protest behind her. But he didn’t stop running his hands up and down her arms. In fact, he hadn’t stopped touching her in all the hours that had passed since they had sex, almost like he was scared that if he stopped touching her that she would pull away from him. “So, I enlisted Echo to help me fake being in Polis. She has a friend who helps with that kind of thing, letting me completely disappear for a while.” Bellamy rested his head on top of hers. “Nobody would question not seeing me for a while if they all thought I was busy in med school.” Plus, Clarke called in enough favors to make sure that her family was genuinely convinced that she was there… not that it did much good since Thelonious saw right through it.

“You said you came back for Wells. Was that part true?” he asked, and she let out a sigh.

“I didn’t plan on staying, and I tried to stay out of the Mt. Weather conspiracy… but then, you picked me as your mark,” she said, stealing a glance at him.

“So, I ruined your plan,” he groaned, and Clarke couldn’t help but laugh.

“Of course, I didn’t know that for a while. I just thought you were a nice guy to spend time with while I was stuck in Arkadia,” she teased.

“Makes me feel real special,” he replied, and she elbowed him playfully. She leaned back against him, savoring how warm he felt in this cold unit, not letting herself think about what would happen when they were let out of this unit in a few hours.

She started explaining how she figured out what Bellamy was up to, pointing to the charity brunch as the moment that she was starting to figure out something as up. She explained that Marcus showing up was what gave Bellamy away completely, leading her down a path that revealed everything he was doing. “I played along. I was pissed off, but also really wanted to get a better idea of what you were planning,” she explained.

“So, while I was using you as a way into your family, you were using me as a way to figure out what Marcus was planning,” he huffed, and a giggle escaped Clarke’s lips unexpectedly. When she looked back at Bellamy, his eyes were boring into her with a tenderness that caught her off guard.

“I mean,” she said, dragging her eyes away from him, “Marcus did literally everything he could to keep me out of this, and I still managed to get dragged back into it. I shouldn’t have even been there the day we met.”

A laugh escaped his lips now, and Clarke could hear it erupting through his chest. “It was ridiculous of him to think you could stay out of this.”

“Look at the lengths you two had to go to just to get me to talk,” she smirked, gesturing to the storage unit they were still trapped in for a few more hours.

“It was a little extreme,” he conceded in a voice that said he really didn’t regret it.

“A little?” she huffed before breaking out into another fit of laughter, and Bellamy tucked his face into her hair, laughing along quietly.

“I’m sorry,” he murmured.

“You should be. I’m still pissed,” she reminded, wagging her finger at him. Regardless of what happened in here tonight, she was not about to forget how it came about.

He pressed a kiss to her forehead before murmuring, “Okay.” They fell into a comfortable silence. It was odd, knowing that Bellamy knew almost all her secrets now. She let her mind drift, wondering how Echo and Raven would react to what happened here. Raven would probably come around… but Echo was fiercely protective of the people she cared about and had made it very clear that she would have no problem with killing Bellamy if he hurt Clarke again.

“Clarke, I do have a question,” Bellamy interrupted her thoughts, and her stomach dropped.

“You want to know what she told him on the phone, right?” she asked, looking back at the painful look in his eyes. This was information he had desperately been wanting but had no way of finding out until now. Tsing didn’t keep accurate records, leaving Clarke the only source to let him know what his mother’s potential last words were. God, she wished she knew more… that she could give him some kind of comfort. But she was just a little girl when it all happened. “The man that the police pinned the bombing on… they both had known him.”

“Sinclair?” She nodded quickly, wishing she could have gotten Raven to open up more about him and his place in all of this. All Clarke knew was that he was framed, and Raven was willing to go through hell to fix that.

“My dad and Aurora had accidentally set him up, following some suggestion from Thelonious. I wished I remembered more of the specifics,” she apologized.

“It’s okay,” he sighed.

“She didn’t know what they were planning though,” she reassured as she turned to face him. She took his hands in hers, trying to let him know that his mother was one of the few good guys… just like her dad. “Neither of them did. And they were both on their way to confess… to make things right.”

Bellamy leaned forward, pressing his head into her shoulder. She started to rub his shoulders reassuringly as he processed all of this, just wishing she could have remembered more. She might have if she hadn’t spent so many years being convinced that she made the whole thing up. “She would have loved you,” Bellamy whispered suddenly as he sat up, and she swallowed.

“He wouldn’t have liked you at first,” she realized, chuckling at her own words. No, her father would be very suspicious of Bellamy initially. He’d be suspicious of anyone that captured her heart as quickly as Bellamy did. “But you would have crept up on him,” she teased, and Bellamy threw his head back. Yeah, he would have eventually adored Bellamy, would have seen just how much Bellamy cared for her, and would have treated him like his own son.

Something about thinking about how much her father loved her made her think of Octavia’s situation with her baby, and now was a good a time as any to have this talk with Bellamy. “There is something I’ve been meaning to talk to you about,” Clarke started, looking down at her hands before Bellamy took her hand in his. “It’s about Octavia.”

“Clarke.”

“She can’t stay in Arkadia,” she whispered, hating the words coming out of her mouth because she knew that Bellamy would be devastated when Octavia left.

“I know,” he said, his voice sounding so small that it scared her.

“If Thelonious ever figures out what you’re up to, he wouldn’t hesitate to hurt someone you care about just to hurt you. He’s done it before,” Clarke explained.

“Clarke, I know. And Octavia wants out anyway,” he explained, and she looked to see the pained expression on his face.

“I can make her disappear like I did,” Clarke said quickly, trying to reassure him that there was a plan in place, that Octavia would be okay. “She and Lincoln could go find a happy corner of the world to be safe in, and if anyone tried to find her, they would just find a series of dead ends. Um, I already have new documents for them, with new names and passports,” she explained, although there was a lot more that needed to get done before Octavia could flee. Clarke almost tried to pull out her phone to text Echo for an update before remembering that she had no signal out here.

“Thank you,” he whispered as he pressed his forehead against hers. And Clarke let out a sigh of relief.

 

“Oh good, she didn’t murder you,” Marcus smirked as she brushed past him.

“Maybe I’m saving my bullets for you,” Clarke snapped, her eyes struggling to adjust to the sun after hours of being trapped in that dark unit.

“Marcus, I’ll meet you in the car,” Bellamy said very pointedly, and Clarke turned to look at him.

“Something more to say after spending thirteen hours straight with me?” she teased, but Bellamy was not in the joking mood. No, he tucked his hands into his pockets, looking down at the ground with a seriousness that made her nervous.

“Since the beginning, O has been my partner in all of this,” he said shakily.

“I know,” Clarke jumped in.

His eyes finally met her with a nervousness she wasn’t expecting. “I can’t do this alone, Clarke,” he said, and her face fell. “I know that everything isn’t perfect between us. I have no idea where we will be when all of this is over.”

“Bellamy.”

“I need a partner in this,” he said, stepping toward her and placing his hands on both sides of Clarke’s face. “And I need it to be you,” he pleaded, and she swallowed. “I need you.”

Didn’t he already know that he had her? She was his and he was hers. They were two very broken people who needed each other in a way that almost scared Clarke. But he understood her in a way that very few could. He knew what it was like to become something horrible to fight something even worse. He knew what it was like to know the truth when no one else believed it. He knew what it was like to have the world flipped upside down at such a young age.

They might have put each other through hell… they might not have figured much out… but they still had each other, as messy as their relationship was.

“And you have me,” Clarke reassured. She didn’t know what she could really give him right now. She was too broken right now to offer him much, but she could give him this much.

**Author's Note:**

> I'm on the tumblr and the twitter as asroarke, so come yell at me if you want. Hope you enjoy the update!


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